Over the centuries of Islamic history, Muslim rulers, Islamic scholars, and ordinary Muslims have held many different attitudes towards other religions. Attitudes have varied according to time, place and circumstance.

The Qur'an distinguishes between the monotheistic People of the Book (ahl al-kitab), ie. Jews, Christians, Sabians and others on the one hand and polytheists or idolaters on the other hand.[citation needed] There are certain kinds of restrictions that apply to polytheists but not to "People of the Book". One example is that Muslim males are allowed to marry a Christian or Jew, but not a polytheist. Muslim women, however, may not marry non-Muslim men.[1]

The idea of Islamic supremacy is encapsulated in the formula, "Islam is exalted and nothing is exalted above it."[1]

Apostasy in Islam can be punishable by death and/or imprisonment according to some interpretations but they are only found in hadiths and there is nothing in the Quran that commands death penalty for apostate so the issue of apostasy is controversial.[3] W. Heffening states that Shafi'is interpret verse [Quran2:217] as adducing the main evidence for the death penalty in Qur'an.[4] Wael Hallaq states the death penalty was a new element added later and "reflects a later reality and does not stand in accord with the deeds of the Prophet." He further states that "nothing in the law governing apostate and apostasy derives from the letter of the holy text." [5] There are also interpretations according to which apostates aren't executed nor punished, and there is freedom of religion.

During the thirteen years that Muhammad led his followers against the Meccans and then against the other Arab tribes, Christian and Jewish communities who had submitted to Muslim rule were allowed to worship in their own way and follow their own family law, and were given a degree of self-government.

However, the non-Muslim dhimmis were subject to taxation jizyah at a different rate of the Muslim zakat. Dhimmis also faced economic impediments, restrictions on political participation and/or social advancement based on their non-Muslim status.

Some Jews generally rejected Muhammad's status as a prophet.[6] According to Watt, "Jews would normally be unwilling to admit that a non-Jew could be a prophet."[7] In the Constitution of Medina, Muhammad demanded the Jews' political loyalty in return for religious and cultural autonomy;[6][8] in every major battle with the Medinans, two local Jewish tribes were found to be treachous (see [Quran2:100]). After Badr and Uhud, the Banu Qainuqa and Banu Nadir (the latter being an ethnic Arab tribe who converted to Judaism, according to the Muslim historian al-Yaqubi), respectively, took up arms against the ummah and were subsequently expelled "with their families and possessions" from Medina.[9]

However, this incident does not imply that Jews in general rejected Muhammad's constitution. One Yemenite Jewish document, found in the Cairo Genizah, claims that many Jews had not only accepted Muhammad as a prophet, but even desecrated Sabbath in order to join Muhammad in his struggle; historians suggest that this document, called Dhimmat an-nabi Muhammad (Muhammad’s Writ of Protection), may have been fabricated by Yemenite Jews for the purpose of self-defence.[10] Still, some Yemeni Jews considered Muhammad a true prophet, including Natan'el al-Fayyumi, a major 12th century rabbi who incorporated various Shia doctrines into his view of Judaism.

The Syriac PatriarchIshôyahb III wrote in his correspondence to Simeon of Rewardashir, "As for the Arabs, to whom God has at this time given rule (shultãnâ) over the world, you know well how they act toward us. Not only do they not oppose Christianity, but they praise our faith, honour the priests and saints of our Lord, and give aid to the churches and monasteries."[11]

After Muhammad's death in 632, Islamic rule grew rapidly, encompassing what is now the Middle East, Egypt, North Africa, and Iran. Most of the new subjects were Christian or Jewish, and considered People of the Book. (After some argument, the Zoroastrians were considered People of the Book as well.[12]) Christians, Jews, and Zoroastrians were called dhimmi, protected persons. As noted above, they could worship, follow their own family law, and own property. People of the Book were not subject to certain Islamic rules, such as the prohibitions on alcohol and pork, but were subject to other restrictions. Under the Islamic state, they were exempt from military service, but were required to pay a poll tax known as jizya. (They were, however, exempt from the zakat required of Muslims.) They could be bureaucrats and advisors, but they could never be rulers.

Under the Ummayads and Abbasids, the Islamic community was increasingly fragmented into various sects and kingdoms, each of which had its own evolving policy towards dhimmi and towards conquered polytheists.

From historical evidence, it appears Tokharistan was the only area of Iran heavily colonized by Arabs, where Buddhism flourished when they arrived and the only area incorporated into the Arab empire where Sanskrit studies were pursued up to the conquest. The grandson of Barmak was the vizier of the empire and took personal interest in Sanskrit works and Indian religions. When the Barmakids were removed from power and their influence disappeared, no further translations of Sanskrit works into Arabic is known until that of Al-Biruni.[13]

With the Ghaznavids and later the Mughals, Islam also expanded further into northern India. Will Durant, in The Story of Civilization, described this as "probably the bloodiest story in history." This approach was not uniform, and different rulers adopted different strategies. The Mughal emperor Akbar, for example, was relatively tolerant towards Hindus, while his great-grandson Aurangzeb was heavily intolerant. Hindus were ultimately given the tolerated religious minority status of dhimmi in their own homeland. However, the underlying complexity of Hindu philosophy was useful in this regard, as it had always posited an underlying unity of all things, including the fusion of various deities into a single reality (Brahman).[citation needed]

The Buddhists of India were not as fortunate; although Buddhism had been in decline prior to the Muslim invasions, the destruction of monastic universities in the invasions such as Nalanda and Vikramashila were a calamity from which it never recovered. According to one Buddhist scholar, the monasteries were destroyed because they were large, fortified edifices considered threats by Muslim Turk invaders.

The Almohad rulers of Muslim Spain were initially intolerant, and engaged in forced conversions[citation needed]; Maimonides, for example, was forced to masquerade as a Muslim and eventually flee Spain after the initial Almohad conquest.

However, it is worth mentioning that most Muslims rulers in Spain could be considered tolerant with some exceptions.[citation needed] Christians were free to practice their own beliefs, and had kept their own churches, the tolerant atmosphere in Muslim Spain made it a refuge for Jews persecuted in other European lands.[citation needed]

After the Arab conquest of the Buddhist center of Balkh, a Quranic commentator was denounced for anthropomorphism, a standard attack on those sympathetic to Buddhism. Hiwi al-Balkhi had attacked the authority of Quran ad revealed religions, reciting the claims of Zoroastrianism, Christianity and Judaism.[14]

According to Arthur Jeffery, "It is rare until modern times to find so fair and unprejudiced a statement of the views of other religions, so earnest an attempt to study them in the best sources, and such care to find a method which for this branch of study would be both rigorous and just."[16] Biruni compared Islam with pre-Islamic religions, and was willing to accept certain elements of pre-Islamic wisdom which would conform with his understanding of the Islamic spirit.[17]

In the introduction to his Indica, Biruni himself writes that his intent behind the work was to engage dialogue between Islam and the Indian religions, particularly Hinduism as well as Buddhism.[16] Biruni was aware that statements about a religion would be open to criticism by its adherents, and insisted that a scholar should follow the requirements of a strictly scientific method. According to William Montgomery Watt, Biruni "is admirably objective and unprejudiced in his presentation of facts" but "selects facts in such a way that he makes a strong case for holding that there is a certain unity in the religious experience of the peoples he considers, even though he does not appear to formulate this view explicitly." Biruni argued that Hinduism was a monotheistic faith like Islam, and in order to justify this assertion, he quotes Hindu texts and argues that the worship of idols is "exclusively a characteristic of the common people, with which the educated have nothing to do."[16]

Biruni argued that the worship of idols "is due to a kind of confusion or corruption."[16] According to Watt, Biruni "goes on to maintain that in the course of generations the origin of the veneration of the images is forgotten, and further that the ancient legislators, seeing that the Veneration of images is advantageous, made it obligatory for the ordinary, he mentions the view of some people that, before God sent prophets, all mankind were idol-worshippers, but he apparently does not presumably held that, apart from the messages transmitted by prophets, men could know the existence and unity of God by rational methods of philosophy." Biruni argued that "the Hindus, no less than the Greeks, have philosophers who are believers in monotheism."[16] Al-Biruni also compared Islam and Christianity, citing passages from the Qur'an and Bible which state that their followers should always speak the truth.[18]

During the 19th and early 20th centuries, most Islamic states fell under the sway of European colonialists, the colonialists enforced tolerance, especially of European Christian missionaries. After World War II, there was a general retreat from colonialism, and predominantly Muslim countries were again able to set their own policies regarding non-Muslims, this period also saw the beginning of increased migration from Muslim countries into the First World countries of Europe, the UK, Canada, the US, etc. This has completely reshaped relations between Islam and other religions.

Some predominantly Muslim countries allow the practice of all religions. Of these, some limit this freedom with bans on proselytizing or conversion, or restrictions on the building of places of worship; others (such as Mali) have no such restrictions. In practice, the situation of non-Muslim minorities depends not only on the law, but on local practices, which may vary.[citation needed]

Some countries are predominantly Muslim and allow freedom of religion adhering to democratic principles. Of particular note are the following countries:[19]

Indonesia and Malaysia have a significant population from the Hindu, Christian and Buddhist religions. They are allowed to practice their religions[citation needed], build places of worship and even have missionary schools and organizations but with limitation of such practice.

In Syria, there are about 2.2 million Christians (10-12% of the population) from about 15 different religious and ethnic sects (Greek Orthodox, Syrian Orthodox, Church of the East, Protestants, Armenians Apostolic and various Catholics, Greek, Syrian, Aremenian, Chaldean, Maronite, Latin), as well as a few dozen Jews, and they have many hundreds of independent privately owned churches and some 15 synagogues. The freedom of religion is well observed by the state law as well as the historical long record of tolerance since the Ummayde caliph days. Christmas and Easter days are official holidays for both the Catholic or Orthodox calendar.

Some predominantly Muslim countries are less tolerant of non-Muslims:

Pakistan has different electorates for Muslims and non-Muslims, and also two chief justices of Supreme Court of Pakistan were Hindu and Christian.

Saudi Arabia limits religious freedom to a high degree, prohibiting public worship by other religions.

The now-overthrown Taliban regime in Afghanistan was considered intolerant by many observers. Some ancient Buddhist monuments, like the Buddhas of Bamyan, were destroyed as idolatrous.

The constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran recognizes Islam, Christianity, Judaism, and Zoroastrianism as People of the Book and official religions, and they are granted the right to exercise religious freedom in Iran.[20][21] Five of the 270 seats in parliament are reserved for these three religions. However, the situation of Bahá'ís, the largest religious minority in the country, is far worse. Bahá'ís are often attacked and dehumanized on political, religious, and social grounds to separate Bahá'ís from the rest of society.[22] According to Eliz Sanasarian "Of all non-Muslim religious minorities the persecution of the Bahais has been the most widespread, systematic, and uninterrupted."[21] See Religion in Iran and Persecution of Bahá'ís. Also, senior government posts are reserved for Muslims. All minority religious groups, including Sunni Muslims, are barred from being elected president. Jewish, Christian and Zoroastrian schools must be run by Muslim principals.[23] Compensation for death paid to the family of a non-Muslim was (by law) less than if the victim was a Muslim. Conversion to Islam is encouraged by entitling converts to inherit the entire share of their parents (or even uncle's) estate if their siblings (or cousins) remain non-Muslim.[24] Iran's non-Muslim population has fallen dramatically, for example, the Jewish population in Iran dropped from 80,000 to 30,000 in the first two decades of the revolution.[25]

In Sudan, there was extensive use of the rhetoric of religious war by both parties in the decades-long battle between the Muslim North and the largely non-Muslim South (see Second Sudanese Civil War.)

In Egypt, a 16 December 2006 judgement of the Supreme Administrative Council created a clear demarcation between "recognized religions"—Islam, Christianity and Judaism—and all other religious beliefs; the ruling effectively delegitimatizes and forbids the practice of all but these aforementioned religions.[26][27] The ruling leaves members of other religious communities, including Bahá'ís, without the ability to obtain the necessary government documents to have rights in their country, essentially denying them of all rights of citizenship,[28] they cannot obtain ID cards, birth certificates, death certificates, marriage or divorce certificates, and passports; they also cannot be employed, educated, treated in public hospitals or vote among other things.[28] See Egyptian identification card controversy.

According to Islamic law, jizya (poll tax) is to be paid by all non-Muslims,[1] excluding the weak and the poor, living in a Muslim state, to the general welfare of the state. Also, in his book "Al-Kharaj," Abu Yusuf says, "No Jizya is due on females or young infants." In exchange for the tax, the non-Muslims are required to be given security, provided compensation from the Muslim Exchequer when they are in need, treated on equality with Muslims, and enjoy rights as nationals of the state. Al-Balathiri comments on this saying, "Khaled Ibn Al-Walid, on entering Damascus as a conqueror, offered a guarantee of security to its people and their properties and churches, and promised that the wall of the city would not be pulled down, and none of their houses be demolished, it was a guarantee of God, he said, and of the Caliph and all believers to keep them safe and secure on condition they paid the dues of the Jizya."[29] This poll tax is different from the alms tax (Zakah) paid by the Muslim subjects of a Muslim state. Whereas jizya is compulsory and paid by the tolerated community per head count, zakat was paid only if one can afford it. Muslims and non-Muslims who hold property, especially land, were required however to pay Kharaj.[citation needed]

One of the open issues in the relation between Islamic states and non-Islamic states is the claim from hardline Muslims that once a certain land, state or territory has been under "Muslim" rule, it can never be relinquished anymore, and that such rule, somewhere in history would give the Muslims a kind of an eternal right on the claimed territory. This claim is particularly controversial with regard to Israel and to a lesser degree Spain and parts of the Balkan and it applies to parts of Kashmir as well.[citation needed]

If Allah so willed, He would have made you a single People, but His plan is to test each of you separately, in what He has given to each of you: so strive in all virtues as in you are in a race, the goal of all of you is to Allah. It is He that will show you the truth of the matters in which ye dispute. (Quran5:48)

And do not argue with the People of the Scripture except in a way that is best, except for those who commit injustice among them, and say, "We believe in that which has been revealed to us and revealed to you. And our God and your God is one; and we are Muslims [in submission] to Him."

The Quran criticizes Christians and Jews who believed that their own religions are the only source of truth.

They say, if you want to be guided to salvation, you should either become a Jew or Christian. Say: What about the religion of Abraham, he also worshiped no one but Allah. We believe in Allah, and the revelation given to us, and to Abraham, to Ishmael, Isaac, Jacob, and the Tribes of Israel, and that given to Moses and Jesus, and that given to all prophets from their Lord: We make no difference between one and another of them: And we bow to Allah. So, if they believe, they are indeed on the right path, but if they turn back, Allah will suffice them, and He is the All-Hearing, the All-Knowing, this is the Baptism of Allah. And who can baptize better than Allah. And it is He Whom we worship. Say: Will you dispute with us about Allah, He is our Lord and your Lord; that we are responsible for our doings and you for yours; and that We are sincere in Him? Or do ye say that Abraham, Ishmael, Isaac, Jacob and the Tribes were Jews or Christians? Say: Do ye know better than Allah? Ah! who is more unjust than those who conceal the testimony they have from Allah. But Allah is not unmindful of what ye do! That was a people that hath passed away. They shall reap the fruit of what they did, and ye of what ye do! Of their merits there is no question in your case. (Quran2:135-141)

Surah Al-Baqara verse 113 states:

The Jews say: "The Christians have nothing to stand upon"; and the Christians say: "The Jews have nothing to stand upon." Yet they both have something to stand upon, they both recite the Book. Like unto their word is what those say who know not; but Allah will judge between them in their quarrel on the Day of Judgment. (Quran2:113)

Many Muslims agree that cooperation with the Christian and Jewish community is important but some Muslims believe that theological debate is often unnecessary:

Say: "O People of the Book! Come to what is common between us and you: That we worship none but God, that we associate no partners with Him, that we erect not, from among ourselves, Lords other than Allah. If then they turn back, say: 'Bear witness that we are bowing to Allah’s will.'" (Quran3:64)

Islam's fundamental theological concept is the belief in one God. Muslims are not expected to visualize God but to worship and adore him as a protector. Any kind of idolatry is condemned in Islam. (Quran112:2) As a result, Muslims hold that for someone to worship any other gods or deities other than Allah (Shirk (polytheism)) is a sin that will lead to separation from Allah.

Muslims believe that Allah sent the Qur'an to bring peace and harmony to humanity through Islam (submission to Allah).[30]Muhammad's worldwide mission was to establish universal peace under the Khilafat. The Khilafat ensured security of the lives and property of non-Muslims under the dhimmi system, this status was originally only made available to non-Muslims who were "People of the Book" (Christians, Jews, and Sabians), but was later extended to include Zoroastrians, Sikhs, Hindus, Mandeans (Sabians), and Buddhists. Dhimmi had more rights than other non-Muslim religious subjects, but often fewer legal and social rights than Muslims. Some Muslims, however, disagree, and hold that adherents of these faiths cannot be dhimmi. Dhimmi enjoyed some freedoms under the state founded by Muhammad and could practice their religious rituals according to their faith and beliefs, it should be noted that non-Muslims who were not classified as "people of the book," for example practitioners of the pre-Muslim indigenous Arabian religions, had few or no rights in Muslim society.

Religious persecution is also prohibited,[Quran10:99–100 (Translated by Yusuf Ali)] although religious persecution in Muslim majority states has occurred, especially during periods of cruel rulers and general economic hardships. Pre-Islamic religious minorities continue to exist in some of their native countries, although only as marginal percentages of the overall population.

Over the centuries, several known religious debates, and polemical works did exist in various Muslim countries between various Muslim sects, as well as between Muslims and non-Muslims. Many of these works survive today, and make for some very interesting reading in the apologetics genre. Only when such debates spilled over to the unlearned masses, and thus causing scandals and civil strife, did rulers intervene to restore order and pacify the public outcry on the perceived attack on their beliefs.

As for sects within Islam, history shows a variable pattern. Various sects became intolerant when gaining favour with the rulers, and often work to oppress or eliminate rival sects, for example, the contemporary persecution of Muslim minorities in Saudi Arabia.[32]Sectarian strife between Shia and Sunni inhabitants of Baghdad is well known through history.

Although there are different ways to worship God, those who do not worship like it was ordinated by a prophet will suffer in the afterlife, this suffering causes pleasure, because they feel spiritual delight in the way of their worship until they repent and take refuge in God.[33]

The Sunni scholar and mystic Ibn Arabi hold, that every religion is kind of worshipping Allah. Even idol-worshippers actually would unconsciously worship Him,[34] but they do not recognise, that in reality, there is no other entity than Allah to worship, thus unnecessarily limiting Him.

Many Muslim scholars believe that Quranic verses such as "Let there be no compulsion in religion: Truth stands out clear from Error" (Quran2:256) and (Quran18:29) show that Islam prohibits forced conversion towards people of any religion.

The meaning of verse 9:5 has however been a subject of discussion amongst other scholars of Islam as well (see At-Tawba 5), this Surah was revealed in the historical context of a broken treaty between Muslims and a group of idolaters during the time of Muhammed. Regarding this verse, Quranic translator M. A. S. Abdel Haleem writes: "In this context, this definitely refers to the ones who broke the treaty,"[35] rather than polytheists generally. In addition, according to Sahih Al-Bukhari although clear orders were given to kill everyone who broke the treaty, Muhammed made a second treaty before entering Mecca and spared even Amar who was responsible for his daughter Rukayya's death and the person who killed his Uncle Hamza.

According to historian Bernard Lewis, forced conversions played a role especially in the 12th century under the Almohad dynasty of North Africa and Andalusia.[36] He is however also of the opinion that other incidents of forced conversions have been rare in Islamic history, he adds that "In the early centuries of Islamic rule there was little or no attempt at forcible conversion, the spread of the faith being effected rather by persuasion and inducement."[37][38][39] A few well-known examples of forced conversion are:[38]

Anusim of Meshhad, Jewish community forced on pain of death to convert in 1839 under Safawid rule. Most continued Jewish practices in secret and many of their descendents returned to Judaism in the early 20th century.[40]

Sabbatai Zevi—convert from Judaism, 17th century mystic, pseudo-Messiah and the self-proclaimed "King of Jews." Converted ostensibly of his own free will, while in prison. Although, some speculate that he may have been executed for treason had he not converted.[43] Muslim authorities were opposed to his death.[44]

1.
Religious text
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Religious texts are texts which religious traditions consider to be central to their religious practice or set of beliefs. It is not possible to create an exhaustive list of religious texts, one of the oldest known religious texts is the Kesh Temple Hymn of Ancient Sumer, a set of inscribed clay tablets which scholars typically date around 2600 BCE. For example, the content of a Protestant Bible may differ from the content of a Catholic Bible, the word canon comes from the Sumerian word meaning standard. Hierographology is the study of sacred texts, the following is an in-exhaustive list of links to specific religious texts which may be used for further, more in-depth study. The writings of Franklin Albert Jones a. k. a, some denominations also include the Apocrypha. For Protestantism, this is the 66-book canon - the Jewish Tanakh of 24 books divided differently, some denominations also include the 15 books of the Apocrypha between the Old Testament and the New Testament, for a total of 81 books. For Catholicism, this includes seven deuterocanonical books in the Old Testament for a total of 73 books, called the Canon of Trent. For the Eastern Orthodox Church, this includes the anagignoskomena, which consist of the Catholic deuterocanon, plus 3 Maccabees, Psalm 151, the Prayer of Manasseh,4 Maccabees is considered to be canonical by the Georgian Orthodox Church. Some Syriac churches accept the Letter of Baruch as scripture, christian Scientists The Bible Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy. This textbook, along with the Bible, serves as the permanent impersonal pastor of the church, the Community of Christ uses the Joseph Smith Translation, which it calls the Inspired Version, as well as updated modern translations. Seventh-day Adventists The Bible The writings of Ellen White are held to a status, though not equal with the Bible. Also known as the Gospel of Mani and The Living Gospel the Treasure of Life the Pragmateia the Book of Mysteries The Book of Giants the Epistles the Psalms, the Shabuhragan The Arzhang The Kephalaia, Discourses, found in Coptic translation. Odù Ifá Jaap Verduijns Odu Ifa Collection Primary religious texts, that is, the Avesta collection, The Yasna, the Visperad, a collection of supplements to the Yasna. The Yashts, hymns in honor of the divinities, the Vendidad, describes the various forms of evil spirits and ways to confound them. Shorter texts and prayers, the Yashts the five Nyaishes, the Sirozeh, there are some 60 secondary religious texts, none of which are considered scripture. The Khordeh Avesta, Zoroastrian prayer book for lay people from the Avesta, religious full text online library Ancient texts library Internet Sacred Text Archive

2.
Pew Research Center
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The Pew Research Center is a nonpartisan American fact tank, which is based in Washington, D. C. It provides information on issues, public opinion, and demographic trends shaping the United States. It also conducts public opinion polling, demographic research, media content analysis, Pew Research Center does not take explicit policy positions, and is a subsidiary of The Pew Charitable Trusts. In 1990 the Times Mirror Company founded the Times Mirror Center for the People & the Press as a project, tasked with conducting polls on politics. Andrew Kohut became its director in 1993, and The Pew Charitable Trusts became its sponsor in 1996. In 2004, the trust established the Pew Research Center in Washington, in 2013, Kohut stepped down as president and became founding director, and Alan Murray became the second president of the center. In October 2014, Michael Dimock, a 14-year veteran of the Pew Research Center, was named president, the Pew Research Center is a nonprofit, tax-exempt 501 organization and a subsidiary of The Pew Charitable Trusts, its primary funder. Some projects are funded by the Evangelical Protestant John Templeton Foundation, the Centers research is divided into seven areas. Politics & Policy Journalism & Media Internet, Science & Tech Religion & Public Life Hispanic Trends Global Attitudes & Trends Social & Demographic Trends Official website The Pew Charitable Trusts

3.
Abrahamic religions
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Judaism, Christianity, and Islam are the largest Abrahamic religions in terms of numbers of adherents. As of 2005, estimates classified 54% of the population as adherents of an Abrahamic religion, about 32% as adherents of other religions. Christianity claims 33% of the population, Islam has 21%, Judaism has 0. 2%. It has been suggested that the phrase, Abrahamic religion, may mean that all these religions come from one spiritual source. Christians refer to Abraham as a father in faith, there is an Islamic religious term, Millat Ibrahim, indicating that Islam sees itself as having practices tied to the traditions of Abraham. Jewish tradition claims descent from Abraham, and adherents follow his practices and it is the Islamic tradition that Muhammad, as an Arab, is descended from Abrahams son Ishmael. Jewish tradition also equates the descendants of Ishmael, Ishmaelites, with Arabs, as the descendants of Isaac by Jacob, who was also later known as Israel, are the Israelites. The Báb, regarded by Baháís as a predecessor to Baháulláh, was a Sayyid, or a descendant of Muhammad. Tradition also holds that Baháulláh is a descendant of Abraham through his third wife, while there is commonality among the religions, in large measure their shared ancestry is peripheral to their respective foundational beliefs and thus conceals crucial differences. For example, the common Christian beliefs of Incarnation, Trinity, there are key beliefs in both Islam and Judaism that are not shared by most of Christianity, and key beliefs of Islam, Christianity, and the Baháí Faith not shared by Judaism. Judaism regards itself as the religion of the descendants of Jacob and it has a strictly unitary view of God, and the central holy book for almost all branches is the Masoretic Text as elucidated in the Oral Torah. In the 19th century and 20th centuries Judaism developed a number of branches, of which the most significant are Orthodox, Conservative. Christianity began as a sect of Judaism in the Mediterranean Basin of the first century CE and evolved into a separate religion—Christianity—with distinctive beliefs, Jesus is the central figure of Christianity, considered by almost all denominations to be God the Son, one person of the Trinity. The Christian biblical canons are usually held to be the ultimate authority, over many centuries, Christianity divided into three main branches, dozens of significant denominations, and hundreds of smaller ones. Islam arose in the Arabian Peninsula in the 7th century CE with a unitary view of God. Muslims hold the Quran to be the authority, as revealed and elucidated through the teachings and practices of a central. The Islamic faith consider all prophets and messengers from Adam through the messenger to carry the same Islamic monotheistic principles. Soon after its founding Islam split into two branches, each of which now have a number of denominations

4.
Christianity and Islam
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Christianity and Islam are the largest religions in the world and share a historical and traditional connection, with some major theological differences. The two faiths share a place of origin in the Middle East, and consider themselves to be monotheistic. Christianity developed out of Second Temple Judaism in the 1st century CE and it is founded on the life, teachings, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, and those who follow him are called Christians. Islam is a religion that developed in the 7th century CE. Islam, which means surrender or submission, was founded on the teachings of Muhammad as an expression of surrender to the will of Allah. Muslims have a range of views on Christianity, from viewing Christians to be fellow possessors of monotheistic scriptures to regarding them as heretics. Christian views on Islam are diverse and range from considering Islam a fellow Abrahamic religion worshipping the same God, Christianity and Islam both consider Jesus to be the Jewish Messiah of the Hebrew scripture. Christians generally consider Jesus to be the Son of God, while Muslims consider the Trinity to be a division of Gods Oneness, Muslims believe Jesus to be a messenger of God, not the son of God. Christianity and Islam have different scriptures, with Islam using the Quran and Christianity the Bible, both texts offer an account of the life and works of Jesus. Both religions believe in the Virgin birth of Jesus through Mary, Christianity, Islam and Judaism are often known as Abrahamic religions because of their common origin through Abraham. Jews and Muslims consider Ishmael, to be the Father of the Arabs, Muslims commonly refer to Jews as People of the Book, people who follow the same general teachings in relation to the worship of the One God as known by Abraham. The Christian Bible is made up of the Old Testament and the New Testament, the Old Testament dates to centuries before the time of Christ. The New Testament dates from the time of Christ, or centuries thereafter, the central books of the Bible for Christians are the Gospels. Christians consider the Quran a non-divine false, later work, the Quran dates from the early 7th Century, or decades thereafter. The Quran assumes familiarity with major narratives recounted in the Jewish and it summarizes some, dwells at length on others and differs in others. Christians believe that Jesus is the Son of God, most Christians are Trinitarian, and believe that Jesus is divine and the only flesh embodiment of the being of the One True God. Christianity teaches that Jesus was condemned to death by the Sanhedrin, Christians believe Jesus was divine and sinless. Islam teaches that Isa was one of the most important prophets of Allah and was a human being, Muslims do not believe that he was the Son of God, nor that he is divine or part of a triune God

5.
Islam and Mormonism
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Mormonism and Islam have been compared to one another ever since the earliest origins of the former in the nineteenth century, often by detractors of one religion or the other—or both. For instance, Joseph Smith, the prophet of Mormonism, was referred to as the modern Mahomet by the New York Herald. This epithet repeated a comparison that had made from Smiths earliest career. Comparison of the Mormon and Muslim prophets still occurs today, sometimes for derogatory or polemical reasons but also for more scholarly, while Mormonism and Islam certainly have many similarities, there are also significant, fundamental differences between the two religions. This article compares the teachings of Islam to those of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which is the largest Latter Day Saint church today. Other smaller denominations of the Latter Day Saint movement, such as the Community of Christ, however, important differences remain between Islamic teaching and the doctrines of these other churches, even where they differ with those of the LDS Church. Islam and Mormonism both originate in the Abrahamic traditions, each differs from mainstream Christianity in being non-Trinitarian. However, where Islam insists upon the oneness and uniqueness of God. Furthermore, its doctrine of Eternal Progression asserts that God was once a man, all of this is emphatically rejected by Islam, which views these teachings as polytheistic, and contrary to the doctrines of the Quran and Islams prophet, Muhammad. Hence, each religion sees its founder as being a prophet of God. However, each religion differs in regard to how it views Jesus, Mormonism sees him as the promised Messiah and the Son of God. Islam agrees that Jesus was a Messiah in his own right, despite great opposition from many other Christian branches, Mormonism identifies itself as a Christian religion, the restoration of primitive Christianity. Islam believes that God is essentially and uniquely one, Mormons accept the Christian division of the Godhead into Father, Son and Holy Ghost, while rejecting the traditional Christian doctrine of the Trinity. Hence, Mormons believe that God is essentially and uniquely one as well, Mormons believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, he is referred to as a god in their religion. Islam insists that only God is eternal, everything else was created by him ex nihilo, Mormonism denies this, insisting that matter and intelligence are equally eternal, and that God only organized them, rather than creating them out of nothing. Mormonism believes that Satan was a son of God named Lucifer, whose plan to negate human free will was rejected. Islam rejects this, stating that Iblis, a jinn, refused to prostrate himself before Adam upon Gods command, causing God to expel him from his presence, Islam believes that the Angels are beings created by God from nūr, who lack free will and serve him unhesitatingly. Mormonism sees Angels as humans in form or resurrected humans

6.
Protestantism and Islam
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As Protestantism is divided into a few distinguishable branches and multiple denominations within the former, it is hard to determine the relations specifically. Many of these denominations can have a different approachment to this matter, Islam is divided as well into various denominations. This article focuses on Protestant-Muslim relations, but should be taken with caution, relations became more conflictual in the early modern and modern periods, although recent attempts have been made at rapprochement. The Habsburg Empire thus entered into conflict with the Ottomans. This situation led the Protestants to consider various forms of cooperation and rapprochement with the Muslim world, the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire was known for his tolerance of the Christian and Jewish faiths within his dominions, whereas the King of Spain did not tolerate the Protestant faith. The Ottoman Empire was indeed known at time for its religious tolerance. Further, the Ottomans supported the Calvinists in Transylvania and Hungary, martin Luthers ambivalence also appears in one of his other comments, in which he said that A smart Turk makes a better ruler than a dumb Christian. Martin Luther also took note of the similarities between Islam and Protestantism in the rejection of idols, although he noted Islam was much more drastic in its rejection of images. In On War against the Turk, Luther is actually less critical of the Turks than he is of the Pope, whom he calls an anti-Christ, or the Jews, the Ottomans also felt closer to the Protestants than to the Catholics. This notion of religious similarities was again taken up in epistolary exchanges between Elizabeth I of England and Sultan Murad III. In a 1574 letter to the Members of the Lutheran sect in Flanders and Spain, Elizabeth I herself however made efforts to adjust her own religious rhetoric in order to minimize differences with the Ottomans and facilitate relations. The alliance provided strategic support to, and effectively protected, the kingdom of France from the ambitions of Charles V and it also gave the opportunity for the Ottoman Empire to become involved in European diplomacy and gain prestige in its European dominions. Side effects included a lot of propaganda against the actions of France. Various overtures were made by Ottoman rulers to the Protestants, who were fighting against a common enemy. Fundamentally, the Protestant Dutch had strong antagonisms to both the Catholics and the Muslims. During the Dutch Revolt, the Dutch were under such a situation that they looked for help from every nationality. The Dutch saw Ottoman successes against the Habsburgs with great interest, William of Orange sent ambassadors to the Ottoman Empire for help in 1566. When no other European power would help, the Dutch cause was offered support, paradoxically enough

7.
Religion in pre-Islamic Arabia
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Religion in pre-Islamic Arabia was a mix of polytheism, Christianity, Judaism, and Iranian religions. Arab polytheism, the dominant form of religion in pre-Islamic Arabia, was based on veneration of deities, gods and goddesses, including Hubal and the goddesses al-Lāt, Al-‘Uzzá and Manāt, were worshipped at local shrines, such as the Kaaba in Mecca. Different theories have been proposed regarding the role of Allah in Meccan religion, many of the physical descriptions of the pre-Islamic gods are traced to idols, especially near the Kaaba, which is said to have contained up to 360 of them. Other religions were represented to varying, lesser degrees, the influence of the adjacent Roman, Aksumite and Sasanian Empires resulted in Christian communities in the northwest, northeast and south of Arabia. Christianity made an impact, but secured some conversions, in the remainder of the peninsula. With the exception of Nestorianism in the northeast and the Persian Gulf, the peninsula had been subject to Jewish migration since Roman times, which had resulted in a diaspora community supplemented by local converts. Additionally, the influence of the Sasanian Empire resulted in Iranian religions being present in the peninsula, Zoroastrianism existed in the east and south, while there is evidence of Manichaeism or possibly Mazdakism being practised in Mecca. Until about the fourth century, almost all Arabs practised polytheistic religions, although significant Jewish and Christian minorities developed, polytheism remained the dominant belief system in pre-Islamic Arabia. The religious beliefs and practices of the nomadic Bedouin were distinct from those of the tribes of towns such as Mecca. Settled urban Arabs, on the hand, are thought to have believed in a more complex pantheon of deities. While the Meccans and the settled inhabitants of the Hejaz worshiped their gods at permanent shrines in towns and oases. According to F. E. Peters, one of the characteristics of Arab paganism as it has come down to us is the absence of a mythology, alternative sources are so fragmentary and specialized that writing a convincing history of this period based on them alone is impossible. Several scholars hold that the literature is not independent of Quran but has been fabricated to explain the verses of Quran. Compounding the problem is that the earliest extant Muslim historical works, some of these works were based on subsequently lost earlier texts, which in their turn recorded a fluid oral tradition. Some scholars postulate that in pre-Islamic Arabia, including in Mecca, Allah was considered to be a deity, the word Allah may have been used as a title rather than a name. The concept of Allah may have been vague in the Meccan religion, per Islamic texts, Meccans and their neighbors believed that the goddesses Al-lāt, Al-‘Uzzá, and Manāt were the daughters of Allah. Regional variants of the word Allah occur in both pagan and Christian pre-Islamic inscriptions, muhammads fathers name was ʿAbd-Allāh, meaning the servant of Allah. Al-lāt, Al-‘Uzzá and Manat were common names used for multiple goddesses across Arabia, there are two possible etymologies of the name al-lāt

8.
Islam and Sikhism
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Islam is an Abrahamic religion founded in the Arabian peninsula, while Sikhism is a Dharmic religion founded in the Punjab. The word Sikh is derived from a Sanskrit word meaning disciple, both religions are strictly monotheistic, although, unlike the monotheism of Islam, Sikhs believe that the One creator permeates the creation. Islam believes that Muhammad was the last prophet, to whom Quran was revealed by God in 7th century CE, and it restricts its primary source of teachings to the Quran and the Hadiths. Sikhism was founded in 15th century CE by Guru Nanak and Guru Granth Sahib is the scripture followed by Sikhs as The Living Guru. In Islam, the system based on the Quran and the Sunnah is known as Sharia. Sikhism allows freedom of conscience and apostasy, daily prayers are one of the pillars of Islam and mandatory for Muslims. Baptized Sikhs read the five banis as part of their daily routine, Islam requires annual zakah by Muslims, while Sikhism encourages alms giving but does not compel it. Kirat Karna, Naam Japna and Vand Chhako are fundamental to Sikhism given by Guru Nanak Dev Ji, pilgrimage is a crucial part of Islam, while Sikhism denounces pilgrimages, circumcision and rituals. Sikhism believes that God is formless and it has been called a form of pantheism, as well as monotheism. Islam believes in one God with Muhammad as his messenger and it denies other gods, and is strictly monotheistic. This Islamic doctrine is a part of its Shahada, Sikhism reveres the ten human Gurus of Sikhs, but accepts that there were many divine messengers, including Krishna, Moses, Jesus and Mohammed in other religions. Islam believes that before Muhammad there were many messengers of God, Muhammad was the last messenger, the Five Pillars of Islam are duties incumbent on every Muslim. These duties are Shahada, Salat, Zakat, Sawm and Hajj and these five practices are essential to Sunni Islam, Shia Muslims subscribe to eight ritual practices which substantially overlap with the five Pillars. The three duties of Sikhs are Naam Japna, Kirat Karni and Vand Chakna, Sikhism has an ambivalent attitude towards miracles and rejects any form of discrimination within and against other religions. Sikhism does not believe in rituals, but is permissive of traditions, adi Granth of Sikhism recognizes and includes spiritual wisdom from other religions. Islam warns against wrongful innovation to what is revealed in the Quran, Islam considers itself to be a perfect and final religion. It warns against innovation to what is revealed in the Quran and it considers other religions and non-believers in Islam as wrongly guided and infidels. Islam does not recognize and accept spiritual wisdom from other religions, Islam also rejects asceticism and celibacy

9.
Islam and blasphemy
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Blasphemy in Islam is impious utterance or action concerning God, Muhammad or anything considered sacred in Islam. The Quran admonishes blasphemy, but does not specify any worldly punishment for blasphemy, the hadiths, which are another source of Sharia, suggest various punishments for blasphemy, which may include death. However, it has argued that the death penalty applies only to cases where there is treason involved that may seriously harm the Muslim community. Various fiqhs of Islam have different punishment for blasphemy, depending on whether blasphemer is Muslim or non-Muslim, the punishment can be fines, imprisonment, flogging, amputation, hanging, or beheading. Muslim clerics may call for the punishment of an alleged blasphemer by issuing a fatwā. There are a number of surah in Quran relating to blasphemy, from which Quranic verses 5,33 and 33, 57-61 have been most commonly used in Islamic history to justify and punish blasphemers. For example, According to several hadiths, Muhammad ordered a number of enemies executed in the hours after Meccas fall, one of those who was killed was Kab ibn al-Ashraf, because he had insulted Muhammad. Some jurists believe that blasphemy automatically implies a Muslim has left the fold of Islam, a Muslim may find himself accused of being a blasphemer, and thus an apostate on the basis of one action or utterance. Some modern Muslim scholars contest that Islam supports blasphemy law, stating that Muslim jurists made the part of Sharia. The first executions for blaspheme were in the hours after Meccas fall to the Muslims in 629, Muhammad ordered a number of enemies executed and based on this early jurists postulated that sabb al-Nabi was a crime so heinous that repentance was disallowed and summary execution was required. According to Islamic sources Nadr ibn al-Harith, who was an Arab Pagan doctor from Taif, used to stories of Rustam and Isfandiyar to the Arabs. After the battle of Badr, al-Harith was captured and, in retaliation, legal historian Sadakat Kadri claims that the actual prosecutions for blasphemy in the Muslim historical record are vanishingly infrequent. One of the few cases was that of a Christian accused of insulting the Islamic Prophet Muhammad. It ended in an acquittal in 1293, though it was followed by a protest against a decision led by the famed, in recent decades Islamic revivalists have called for its enforcement on the grounds that criminalizing hostility toward Islam will safeguard communal cohesion. In one country where strict laws on blaspheme were introduced in the 1980s, Pakistan, over 1300 people have been accused of blasphemy from 1987 to 2014, mostly for allegedly desecrating the Quran. Over 50 people accused of blasphemy have been murdered before their trials were over. Individuals have been accused of blasphemy or of insulting Islam for, salafi scholar Muhammad Al-Munajjid indicates that the Islamic concept of Gheerah requires that Muslims protect the Prophet Mohammed from blasphemy. Slighting a prophet who is mentioned in the Quran, or slighting a member of Muhammads family, claiming to be a prophet or a messenger

10.
Religious conversion
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Religious conversion is the adoption of a set of beliefs identified with one particular religious denomination to the exclusion of others. Thus religious conversion would describe the abandoning of adherence to one denomination and this might be from one to another denomination within the same religion, for example, from Baptist to Catholic Christianity or from Sunni to Shia Islam. In some cases, religious conversion marks a transformation of identity and is symbolized by special rituals. When people marry one spouse may convert to the religion of the other, forced conversion is adoption of a different religion under duress. The convert may secretly retain the previous beliefs and continue, covertly, with the practices of the original religion, over generations a family forced against their will to convert may wholeheartedly adopt the new religion. Proselytism is the act of attempting to convert by persuasion another individual from a different religion or belief system, apostate is a term used by members of a religion or denomination to refer to someone who has left that religion or denomination. Jewish law has a number of requirements of potential converts and they should desire conversion to Judaism for its own sake, and for no other motives. A male convert needs to undergo a ritual circumcision conducted according to Jewish law, a convert must join the Jewish community and reject any previous religious affiliation. Ritual immersion in a pool of water known as a mikvah is required. The Greek word proselyte means a convert to Judaism and it is known that some Chinese, Khazars, Edomites, and Ethiopians, as well as many Arabs, particularly in Yemen, were converts. As late as the 6th century the Eastern Roman empire and Caliph Umar ibn Khattab were issuing decrees against conversion to Judaism, Conversion to Christianity is the religious conversion of a previously non-Christian person to some form of Christianity. Some Christian sects require full conversion for new members regardless of any history in other Christian sects, the exact requirements vary between different churches and denominations. All Christian sects hold that baptism is a ritual. Jesus Christ was baptized at the beginning of his ministry, and prior to event, John the Baptist had been baptizing Jewish believers as a sign of repentance. Baptism is usually understood as an symbol of an inward change. Prior to that Awakening at Antioch, all converts to Christianity were ethnic, following the Awakening, Pagans and infidels were required to undergo Christian baptism to be ultimately accepted in the Kingdom of God. Christian Baptism has some parallels with Jewish Immersion by Mikvah, converting to Catholicism involves religious education followed by initial participation in the sacraments, which are baptism, confession, penance, and communion. Most other sects require a period of prior to acceptance

11.
Islam and antisemitism
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Islam and antisemitism relates to Islamic theological teaching against Jews and Judaism and the treatment of Jews in Muslim countries. With the origin of Islam in the 7th century and its spread in the Arabian peninsula and beyond. Reuven Firestone says, negative assessments and even condemnation of prior religions, scholars have studied and debated Muslim attitudes to, and treatment of, Jews in Islamic thought and societies throughout history. For these scholars, antisemitism in Medieval Islam was local and sporadic rather than general and he argues that Muslims did not attribute cosmic evil to Jews. In Lewis view, it was only in the late 19th century that movements first appeared among Muslims that can be described as antisemitic in the European forms. Frederick M. Schweitzer and Marvin Perry state that there are mostly negative references to Jews in the Quran and Hadith, Jews had the status of dhimmis. They state that much of history Christians treated Jews worse, saying that Jews in Christian lands were subjected to worse polemics, persecutions. According to Walter Laqueur, the interpretations of the Quran are important for understanding Muslim attitudes. Many Quranic verses preach tolerance towards the Jews, others make hostile remarks about them, Muhammad interacted with Jews living in Arabia, he preached to them in hopes of conversion, he fought against and killed many Jews, while he made friends with other Jews. For Martin Kramer, the idea that contemporary antisemitism by Muslims is authentically Islamic touches on some truths, Kramer believes that contemporary antisemitism is due only partially to Israeli policies, about which Muslims may have a deep sense of injustice and loss. But Kramer attributes the primary causes of Muslim antisemitism to modern European ideologies, the Quran makes forty-three specific references to Bani Isrāʾīl. The Arabic term yahud, denoting Jews, and yahudi occur eleven times, according to Khalid Durán, the negative passages use Yahūd, while the positive references speak mainly of the Banī Isrā’īl. Jews are not mentioned at all in dating from the Meccan period. According to Bernard Lewis, the given to Jews is relatively insignificant. The references in the Quran to Jews are interpreted in different ways, according to Bernard Lewis and other scholars, the earliest verses of the Quran were largely sympathetic to Jews. Alongside the 200 odd emigrants from Mecca, who had followed Mohammad, its population consisted of the Faithful of Medina, Arab pagans, three Jewish tribes and some Christians. In paragraph 16 of this document, it states that, Those Jews who follow us are entitled to our aid, paragraph 37 has it that To the Jews their own expenses and to the Muslims theirs. They shall help one another in the event of any attack on the covered by this document

12.
Islamic democracy
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Islamic democracy is a political ideology that seeks to apply Islamic principles to public policy within a democratic framework. Countries which fulfil the three basic features include Afghanistan, Iran, and Malaysia, the concepts of liberalism and democratic participation were already present in the medieval Islamic world. It can be viewed similar to how the minister is chosen in many nations. The legislative power of the Caliph was always restricted by the class, the ulama. Since the law came from the scholars, this prevented the Caliph from dictating legal results. Laws were decided based on the ijma of the Ummah, which was most often represented by the legal scholars, in order to qualify as a legal scholar, it was required that they obtain a doctorate known as the ijazat attadris wa l-ifttd from a madrasa. In many ways, classical Islamic law functioned like a constitutional law, legal scholar L. Ali Khan argues that Islam is fully compatible with democracy. In his book, A Theory of Universal Democracy, Khan provides a critique of liberal democracy and he presents the concept of fusion state in which religion and state are fused. There are no contradictions in Gods universe, says Khan, contradictions represent the limited knowledge that human beings have. According to the Quran and the Sunnah, Muslims are fully capable of preserving spirituality, Muslim democrats, including Ahmad Moussalli, argue that concepts in the Quran point towards some form of democracy, or at least away from despotism. These concepts include shura, ijma, al-hurriyya, al-huqquq al-shariyya, for example, shura may include electing leaders to represent and govern on the community’s behalf. This viewpoint, however, is disputed by more traditional Muslims, much debate occurs on the subject of which Islamic traditions are fixed principles, and which are subject to democratic change, or other forms of modification in view of changing circumstances. Some Muslims allude to an Islamic style of democracy which would recognize such distinctions, another sensitive issue involves the status of monarchs and other leaders, the degree of loyalty which Muslims owe such people, and what to do in case of a conflicting loyalties. According to the Shia understanding, Muhammad named as his successor, his son-in-law, the largest Shia grouping — the Twelvers branch — recognizes a series of Twelve Imams, the last of which is still alive and the Shia are waiting for his reappearance. Since the revolution in Iran, the largest Shia country, Twelver Shia political thought has been dominated by that of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the founder and leader of the revolution. Khomeini argued that in the absence of the Hidden Imam and other divinely-appointed figures, Muslims have not only the right, to that end they must turn to scholars of Islamic law who are qualified to interpret the Quran and the writings of the imams. Khomeini distinguishes between Conventional Fiqh and Dynamic Fiqh, which he believes to also be necessary, Khomeini divided the Islamic commandments or Ahkam into three branches, the primary commandments the secondary commandments and the state commandments. This list includes all commandments which relate to public affairs, such as constitutions, social security, insurance, bank, labour law, taxation, elections, congress, etc

13.
Liberalism and progressivism within Islam
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Liberal movements within Islam involve professed Muslims who have produced a considerable body of liberal thought on the re-interpretation and reform of Islamic understanding and practice. Their work is characterized as progressive Islam, some regard progressive Islam. The methodologies of liberal or progressive Islam rest on the interpretation and re-interpretation of traditional Islamic scripture and other texts, as a consequence, liberal/progressive Muslims may then interpret verses from the Quran allegorically or even set them aside. Taha was hanged in 1985 under the regime of Jaafar al-Nimeiri. Some liberal Muslims see themselves as returning to the principles of the early Ummah and to a claimed ethical and they distance themselves from some traditional and less liberal interpretations of Islamic law which they regard as culturally based and without universal applicability. Several generally accepted tenets have emerged, The autonomy of the individual in interpreting the Quran, more liberal trends include rejecting Hadiths completely or partially like Gamal Al-Banna. A more critical and diverse examination of religious texts, as well as traditional Islamic precedents, complete gender equality in all aspects, including ritual prayer and observance. A more open view on modern culture in relation to customs, dress, certain rules on modesty amongst men and women are still self-enforced in response to the Qurans injunction against immodest dress. The individual use of ijtihad and fitrah is advocated, ijtihad is an Islamic legal term referring to independent reasoning or the thorough exertion of a jurists mental faculty in finding a solution to a legal question. Ijtihad is considered to be a duty for those qualified to perform it. An Islamic scholar who is qualified to perform ijtihad is called a mujtahid, starting from the 18th century, some Muslim reformers began calling for abandonment of taqlid and emphasis on ijtihad, which they saw as a return to Islamic origins. Public debates in the Muslim world surrounding ijtihad continue to the present day, the advocacy of ijtihad has been particularly associated with Islamic modernists and purist Salafi thinkers. Among contemporary Muslims in the West there have emerged new visions of ijtihad which emphasize substantive moral values over traditional juridical methodology, most liberal Muslims believe that Islam promotes the notion of absolute equality of all humanity, and that it is one of its central concepts. Therefore, a breach of human rights has become a source of concern to most liberal Muslims. Liberal Muslims differ with their culturally conservative counterparts in that they believe that all humanity is represented under the umbrella of human rights, Muslim liberals often reject traditional interpretations of Islamic law, which allows Ma malakat aymanukum and slavery. A combination of Islam and feminism has been advocated as a feminist discourse, Islamic feminism is defined by Islamic scholars as being more radical than secular feminism, and as being anchored within the discourse of Islam with the Quran as its central text. During recent times, the concept of Islamic feminism has grown further with Islamic groups looking to support from many aspects of society. In addition, educated Muslim women are striving to articulate their role in society, the definition and application of secularism, especially the place of religion in society, varies among Muslim countries as it does among western countries

14.
Islam and secularism
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The definition and application of secularism, especially the place of religion in society, varies among Muslim countries as it does among western countries. Secularism is often used to describe the separation of life and civil/government matters from religious teachings and commandments, or simply the separation of religion. Secularism in Muslim countries is often contrasted with Islamism, and secularists tend to seek to promote political and social values as opposed to Islamic ones. As the concept of secularism varies among secularists in the Muslim world, on the one hand, secularism is condemned by some Muslim intellectuals who do not feel that religious influence should be removed from the public sphere. On the other hand, secularism is claimed by others to be compatible with Islam, moreover, some scholars argue that secular states have existed in the Muslim world since the Middle Ages. The exact jurisdiction of these courts varies from country to country, but usually includes marriage, divorce, inheritance, the etymology of the Arabic word for secularism can be controversial in itself. Some scholars pointed out that there was no Arabic term to describe the secular and secularism. Secularism was translated into Arabic either as ‘alamaniyah, which is derived from ‘alam, or as ‘ilmaniyah, the term ‘alamaniyah first appeared at the end of the nineteenth century in the dictionary Muhit al-Muhit written by the Christian Lebanese scholar Butrus al-Bustani. Moreover, some refer to ‘almaniyyah which is derived from the word ‘alam, and others prefer dunyawiyyah, the concept of secularism was imported along with many of the ideas of post-enlightenment modernity from Europe into the Muslim world, namely Middle East and North Africa. In the debate on the relationship between religion and state, separability of religious and political authorities in the Islamic world, or status of the Caliph, was one of the biggest issues, john L. Saudi Arabia and Turkey reflected the two polar positions. The majority of Muslim states chose a middle ground in nation building, borrowing heavily from the West and relying on foreign advisers, however while most Muslim governments replaced Islamic law with legal systems inspired by western secular codes, Muslim family law remained in force. It is apolitical Islam, not political Islam, that requires explanation, furthermore, the resurgence of Islam, beginning with the Iranian revolution of 1978-9, defied the illusions of advocates of secularization theory. Furthermore, in most cases, it was not rural but urban phenomena, as early as the end of the first century of the hegira and what has been lacking in the Muslim world is political thought regarding the autonomy of this space. No positive law was developed outside of sharia, the sovereigns religious function was to defend the Islamic community against its enemies, institute the sharia, ensure the public good. The state was an instrument to enable Muslims to live as good Muslims and Muslims were to obey the sultan if he did so, the legitimacy of the ruler was symbolized by the right to coin money and to have the Friday prayer said in his name. The concept of Secularism in Islam has been claimed to have religious sanction too. ”The Hadith is as follows, due to some reason he disliked the idea and commented that it would be better not to do any pollination at all. However for the year the harvest was poor. ”Maulana Wahiduddin Khan. He further says, “According to this hadith, Islam separates religious matters from scientific research, in religious affairs, there has to be strict adherence to divine guidance

15.
Islam
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Islam is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion which professes that there is only one and incomparable God and that Muhammad is the last messenger of God. It is the worlds second-largest religion and the major religion in the world, with over 1.7 billion followers or 23% of the global population. Islam teaches that God is merciful, all-powerful, and unique, and He has guided mankind through revealed scriptures, natural signs, and a line of prophets sealed by Muhammad. The primary scriptures of Islam are the Quran, viewed by Muslims as the word of God. Muslims believe that Islam is the original, complete and universal version of a faith that was revealed many times before through prophets including Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses. As for the Quran, Muslims consider it to be the unaltered, certain religious rites and customs are observed by the Muslims in their family and social life, while social responsibilities to parents, relatives, and neighbors have also been defined. Besides, the Quran and the sunnah of Muhammad prescribe a comprehensive body of moral guidelines for Muslims to be followed in their personal, social, political, Islam began in the early 7th century. Originating in Mecca, it spread in the Arabian Peninsula. The expansion of the Muslim world involved various caliphates and empires, traders, most Muslims are of one of two denominations, Sunni or Shia. Islam is the dominant religion in the Middle East, North Africa, sizable Muslim communities are also found in Horn of Africa, Europe, China, Russia, Mainland Southeast Asia, Philippines, Northern Borneo, Caucasus and the Americas. Converts and immigrant communities are found in almost every part of the world, Islam is a verbal noun originating from the triliteral root s-l-m which forms a large class of words mostly relating to concepts of wholeness, submission, safeness and peace. In a religious context it means voluntary submission to God, Islām is the verbal noun of Form IV of the root, and means submission or surrender. Muslim, the word for an adherent of Islam, is the active participle of the verb form. The word sometimes has connotations in its various occurrences in the Quran. In some verses, there is stress on the quality of Islam as a state, Whomsoever God desires to guide. Other verses connect Islām and dīn, Today, I have perfected your religion for you, I have completed My blessing upon you, still others describe Islam as an action of returning to God—more than just a verbal affirmation of faith. In the Hadith of Gabriel, islām is presented as one part of a triad that also includes imān, Islam was historically called Muhammadanism in Anglophone societies. This term has fallen out of use and is said to be offensive because it suggests that a human being rather than God is central to Muslims religion

16.
Iman (concept)
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Iman in Islamic theology denotes a believers faith in the metaphysical aspects of Islam. Its most simple definition is the belief in the six articles of faith, the term Iman has been delineated in both the Quran as well as the Hadith of Gabriel. According to the Quran, Iman must be accompanied by righteous deeds, in the Hadith of Gabriel, Iman in addition to Islam and Ihsan form the three dimensions of the Islamic religion. There exists a debate both within and outside Islam on the link between faith and reason in religion, and the importance of either. Several scholars contend that faith and reason spring from the source and hence must be harmonious. In Arabic, Iman, pronounced means faith and it is the verbal noun of آمَنَ to believe. In a hadith, Muhammad defined iman as a knowledge in the heart, a voicing with the tongue, Faith is confidence in a truth which is real. When people have confidence, they submit themselves to that truth, hamiduddin Farahi, while explaining the meaning of Imān in his exegesis, wrote, The root of imān is amn. It is used in various shades of meaning, one of its derivatives is mumin, which is among the noble names of Allah because He gives peace to those who seek His refuge. This word is also an ancient religious term, another similar narration ascribed to Muhammad is, Ibn Abbas narrates that the Angel Jibril once asked the Prophet, Tell me what is Iman. Jibril then asked him, If I do all this will I be with Iman, the Prophet said, When you have done all of this, you will be having Iman. It is also assumed that the essential Iman consists of the first 3 items, in the Quran, Iman is one of the 10 qualities which cause one to be the recipient of Gods mercy and reward. The Quran states that faith can grow with remembrance of God, the Quran also states that nothing in this world should be dearer to a true believer than faith. Muhammad is reported to have said that he gained sweetness of faith who was pleased to accept God as Lord, Islam as religion and he also said that no one can be a true believer unless he loves the Prophet more than his children, parents and relatives. At another instance, he has remarked that it is love with God. Amin Ahsan Islahi, an exegete of the Quran has clarified the nature of this love. It is because of love that a person, in every sphere of life, gives priority to this viewpoint. Islahi and Maududi both have inferred that the Quranic comparison of a word and a bad word in Chapter 14 is actually a comparison of faith

17.
Tawhid
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Tawhid is the indivisible oneness concept of monotheism in Islam. Tawhid is the religions most fundamental concept and holds that God is One, because of the principle of Tawhid the Islamic belief in God is considered Unitarian. Tawhid constitutes the foremost article of the Muslim profession of faith, the first part of the Shahada is the declaration of belief in the oneness of God. To attribute divinity to an entity, known as shirk, is an unpardonable sin according to the Quran. Muslims believe that the entirety of the Islamic teaching rests on the principle of Tawhid, There is an uncompromising monotheism at the heart of the Islamic beliefs which is seen, from an Islamic standpoint, as distinguishing Islam from other major religions. The Quran asserts the existence of a single and absolute truth that transcends the world, a unique, independent and indivisible being, who is independent of the entire creation. God, according to Islam, is a universal God, rather than a local, tribal, or parochial one—God is an absolute, who integrates all affirmative values and brooks no evil. Islamic intellectual history can be understood as an unfolding of the manner in which successive generations of believers have understood the meaning. Islamic scholars have different approaches toward understanding it, Islamic theology, jurisprudence, philosophy, Sufism, even to some degree the Islamic understanding of natural sciences, all seek to explain at some level the principle of tawhid. The classical definition of tawhid was limited to declaring or preferring belief in one God, in modern Arabic, the verbs wahhada or yuwahhidu mean to unite or bring together something that which wasnt one, which reflects the struggle of monotheism against polytheism. Attribution of divinity to an entity, shirk, is considered a denial of the truth of God. Associating others with God is known as shirk and is the antithesis of Tawhid and it is usually but not always in the form of idolatry and supplicating to others than Allah, or believing that they hold the same attributes as him in an equal or lesser degree. Shirk is divided into two categories, Greater shirk, open and apparent, Lesser shirk, concealed or hidden, Greater Shirk consists of the above-mentioned deeds. A person commits lesser shirk or hidden polytheism when he claims to believe in God but his thoughts and actions do not reflect his belief. There are also forms of Shirk, they must be avoided as well. Within Islam, shirk is a crime, God may forgive any sin if one dies in that state except for committing shirk. Ali states that God is One means that God is away from likeness and numeration, the first step of religion is to accept, understand and realize him as the Lord. The correct form of belief in his unity is to realize that he is so absolutely pure and that is, one should realize that there is no difference between his person and his attributes, and his attributes should not be differentiated or distinguished from his person

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God in Islam
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In Islamic theology, God is the all-powerful and all-knowing creator, sustainer, ordainer and judge of everything in existence. Islam emphasizes that God is strictly singular, unique, inherently One, also all-merciful, the Surat 112 Al-Ikhlāş says, He is God, One. He neither begets nor is born, Nor is there to Him any equivalent, in Islam, there are 99 known names of God, each of which evoke a distinct attribute of God. All these names refer to Allah, the supreme and all-comprehensive god, among the 99 names of God, the most familiar and frequent of these names are the Compassionate and the Merciful. Creation and ordering of the universe is seen as an act of mercy for which all creatures sing Gods attributes. Allah is the Arabic word referring to God in Abrahamic religions and it is distinguished from ilāh, the Arabic word meaning deity, which could refer to any of the gods worshipped in pre-Islamic Arabia. God is described and referred to in the Quran and hadith by certain names or attributes, the Quran refers to the attributes of God as most beautiful names. According to Gerhard Böwering, They are traditionally enumerated as 99 in number to which is added as the highest Name, there are numerous conventional phrases and expressions invoking God. Islams most fundamental concept is a strict monotheism called tawhid, affirming that God is one, the basic creed of Islam, the Shahada, involves لا إله إلا الله, or, I testify there is no god other than God. Muslims reject the Christian doctrine of the Trinity and divinity of Jesus, according to Vincent J. Tawhid constitutes the foremost article of the Muslim profession. The deification or worship of anyone or anything other than God is the biggest sin in Islam, the entirety of the Islamic teaching rests on the principle of Tawhid. God is the creator of the universe and all the creatures in it, praise is to Allah, Creator of the heavens and the earth, made the angels messengers having wings, two or three or four. He increases in creation what He wills, indeed, Allah is over all things competent. And it is We Who have constructed the heavens with might and verily and we created man from an extract of clay. Then We made him as a drop in a place of settlement, so blessed be Allah, the Best of creators. Be dutiful to your Lord, Who created you from a person and from Him He created his wife. And verily Allah is my Lord and your Lord, the most commonly used names in the primary sources are Al-Rahman, meaning Most Compassionate and Al-Rahim, meaning Most Merciful. God is said to love forgiving, with a hadith stating God would replace a sinless people with one who sinned but still asked repentance

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Prophets and messengers in Islam
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Belief in Islamic prophets is one of the six articles of the Islamic faith, and specifically mentioned in the Quran. Muslims believe the first prophet was also the first human being, Many of the revelations delivered by the 48 prophets in Judaism and many prophets of Christianity are mentioned as such in the Quran but usually in altered form and with different names. For example, the Jewish Elisha is called Alyasa, Job is Ayyub, Jesus is Isa, the Torah given to Moses is called Tawrat, the Psalms given to David is the Zabur, the Gospel given to Jesus is Injil). Notwithstanding, none of the seven Jewish Prophetesses are mentioned in the Quran as prophets, each came to preach Islam at different times in history and some told of the coming of the final Islamic prophet and messenger of God, who would be named Ahmed commonly known as Muhammad. Each Islamic prophet directed a message to a different group of people, in Arabic and Hebrew, the term nabī means prophet. Forms of this noun occur 75 times in the Quran, the term nubuwwah occurs five times in the Quran. The terms rasūl and mursal denote messenger or apostle and occur more than 300 times, the term for a prophetic message, risālah, appears in the Quran in ten instances. The Syriac form of rasūl Allāh, s̲h̲eliḥeh d-allāhā, occurs frequently in the apocryphal Acts of St. Thomas, the corresponding verb for s̲h̲eliḥeh—s̲h̲alaḥ, occurs in connection with the prophets in the Hebrew Bible. The words prophet and messenger appear several times in the Old Testament, the following table shows these words in different languages, In the Hebrew Bible, the word navi occurs more commonly, and the Hebrew word malakh refers to Angels in Judaism. According to Judaism, Haggai, Zachariah, and Malachi were the last prophets, with them, the authentic period of Nevuah died, and nowadays only the Bath Kol exists. In the New Testament, however, the word becomes more frequent. Messenger may refer to Jesus, to his Apostles and to John the Baptist, but the last book of the Old Testament, the Book of Malachi, speaks of a messenger that Christian commentators interpret as a reference to the future prophet John the Baptist. In Muslim belief, every Islamic prophet preached Islam, the beliefs of charity, prayer, pilgrimage, worship of God and fasting are believed to have been taught by every prophet who has ever lived. The Quran itself calls Islam the religion of Abraham and refers to Jacob, the Quran speaks of the Islamic prophets as being the greatest human beings of all time. A prophet, in the Muslim sense of the term, is a person whom God specially chose to teach the faith of Islam, before man was created, God had specifically selected those men whom He would use as prophets. This does not, however, mean that every prophet began to prophesy from his birth, some were called to prophesy late in life, in Muhammads case at the age of 40. Others, such as John the Baptist, were called to prophesy while still at a young age, the Quran verse 4,69 lists various virtuous groups of human beings, among whom prophets occupy the highest rank. Verse 4,69 reads, All who obey Allah and the messenger are in the company of those on whom is the Grace of Allah—of the prophets, the sincere, the witnesses, and we have made the evil ones friends to those without faith

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Islamic view of angels
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Belief in Angels is one of the six Articles of Faith in Islam. They are considered heavenly beings without their own will unlike humans who perform tasks of God, the imagination of angels in Islam developed from the Quran and was influenced by other religions like Judaism and expanded by tafsir and the hadith literature. Angels take the role of performing different tasks of God. They are said to be created out of light, unlike humans or jinn, they have no biological needs and therefore no lower desires predicted by the natural world. They may be described as creatures of pure emotion and this is narrated in Sahih Bukhari Volume 4, book 56. Besides the personificated interpretation of angels, they are thought of carrying the laws of nature. Angels are not equal in status and consequently, they are delegated different tasks to perform, jibrail is the archangel responsible for revealing the Quran to Muhammad, verse by verse. Jibrail is the angel who communicates with the prophets and also for coming down with the blessings of Allah during the night of Laylat al-Qadr, mikail, who provides nourishments for bodies and souls. Mikail is often depicted as the archangel of mercy who is responsible for bringing rain, Israfil or Israafiyl, is an archangel in Islam who will blow the trumpet at the end of time. According to the hadith, Israfil is the responsible for signaling the coming of Qiyamah by blowing a horn. Azrael/Azraaiyl/Azrail also known as Malak al-maut, is the angel of death and he is responsible for parting the soul from the body of the deads. The angels of the Seven Heavens, hafaza, Kiraman Katibin, two of whom are charged to every human being, one writes down good deeds and another one writes down evil deeds. They are both described as Raqeebun Ateed in the Quran, muaqqibat who keep people from death until its decreed time and who bring down blessings. Jundullah, those who helped Muhammad in the battlefield Those who draw out the souls of the blessed and those angels who drive the clouds. The Angel of the Mountains Munkar and Nakir, who question the dead in their graves, dardail, who travel in the earth searching out assemblies where people remember Gods name. The angels charged with each existent thing, maintaining order and warding off corruption and their number is known only to God. Ridwan, the keeper of the Paradise, azazil is sometimes considered as an angel, who was the keeper of paradise and leader of an angelic army. He is also the instrument of divine anger, otherwise he is held for a Jinni raised to the angelic realm

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Islamic eschatology
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Islamic eschatology is the branch of Islamic scholarship that studies Yawm al-Qiyāmah or Yawm ad-Dīn. This is believed to be the final assessment of humanity by God, consisting of the annihilation of all life, resurrection, the time of the event is not specified, although there are major and minor signs which have been foretold to happen at al-Qiyamah. Many verses of the Quran contain the motif of the impending Last Judgment, surat al-Qiyama has as its main subject the resurrection. The Great Tribulation is also described in the hadith, and commentaries of the such as al-Ghazali, Ibn Kathir, Ibn Majah, Muhammad al-Bukhari. The Day of Judgment is also known as the Day of Reckoning, the hadith describe the end time with more specificity than the Quran, describing the events of al-Qiyamah through twelve major signs. At the time of judgment, terrible corruption and chaos will rule, the Mahdi will be sent and with the help of Jesus, will battle Masih ad-Dajjal. They will triumph, liberating Islam from cruelty, and this will be followed by a time of serenity with people living true to religious values, however, there is no mention of the advent of Mahdi and Isa in one era in any of the hadith. Some Muslim scholars translate the Arabic word Imam as Mahdi to prove the advent of Mahdi, like other Abrahamic religions, Islam also teaches resurrection of the dead, a final tribulation and eternal division of the righteous and wicked. Islamic apocalyptic literature describing Armageddon is often known as fitna, malāḥim, the righteous are rewarded with pleasures of Jannah Paradise, while the unrighteous are punished in Jahannam Hell. The Day of Judgment or Resurrection, al-Qiyāmah, is one of the six articles of faith in Islam. The tribulation associated with it is described in the Quran and hadith, and commentaries of ulama like al-Ghazali, Ibn Kathir, Ibn Majah, Muhammad al-Bukhari, the Day of Judgment is also known as the Day of Reckoning, the Hour, and the Last Day. The Day of Judgment or Resurrection, al-Qiyāmah, relates to one of the six articles in Sunni Islam and seven articles in Shia Islam. There are two sources in Islamic scripture that discuss the Last Judgment, the Quran, which is viewed in Islam as infallible. Hadith are viewed with more flexibility due to the compilation of the traditions in written form. The concept has also discussed in commentaries of ulama such as al-Ghazali, Ibn Kathir. The Quran describes the Last Judgment with a number of interpretations of its verses, there are specific aspects, The time is known only to God. Those who have been dead will believe that a time has passed between birth and death. God will resurrect all, even if they have turned to stone or iron and those that have accepted false deities will suffer in the afterlife

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Five Pillars of Islam
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The Five Pillars of Islam are five basic acts in Islam, considered mandatory by believers and are the foundation of Muslim life. They are summarized in the hadith of Gabriel. The Shia and Sunni both agree on the details for the performance and practice of these acts, but the Shia do not refer to them by the same name. They make up Muslim life, prayer, concern for the needy, self-purification, shahada is a declaration of faith and trust that professes that there is only one God and that Muhammad is Gods messenger. It is a set statement normally recited in Arabic, lā ʾilāha ʾillā-llāhu muḥammadun rasūlu-llāh There is no god but God Muhammad is the messenger of God and it is essential to utter it to become a Muslim and to convert to Islam. Salat consists of five daily prayers according to the Sunna, the names are according to the times, Fajr, Dhuhr, ʿAṣr, Maghrib. All of these prayers are recited while facing in the direction of the Kaaba in Mecca, Muslims must wash before prayer, this washing is called wudu. The prayer is accompanied by a series of set positions including, bowing with hands on knees, a Muslim may perform their prayer anywhere, such as in offices, universities, and fields. However, the mosque is the more preferable place for prayers because the mosque allows for fellowship, Zakāt or alms-giving is the practice of charitable giving based on accumulated wealth. The word zakāt can be defined as purification and growth because it allows an individual to achieve balance, the principle of knowing that all things belong to God is essential to purification and growth. Zakāt is obligatory for all Muslims who are able to do so and it is the personal responsibility of each Muslim to ease the economic hardship of others and to strive towards eliminating inequality. Zakāt consists of spending a portion of wealth for the benefit of the poor or needy. A Muslim may also donate more as an act of voluntary charity, There are five principles that should be followed when giving the zakāt, The giver must declare to God his intention to give the zakāt. The zakāt must be paid on the day that it is due, after the offering, the payer must not exaggerate on spending his money more than usual means. This means if one is then he or she needs to pay a portion of their income. If a person does not have money, then they should compensate for it in different ways, such as good deeds. The zakāt must be distributed in the community from which it was taken, three types of fasting are recognized by the Quran, Ritual fasting, fasting as compensation for repentance, and ascetic fasting. Ritual fasting is an act during the month of Ramadan

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Shahada
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The Shahada, is an Islamic creed declaring belief in the oneness of God and the acceptance of Muhammad as Gods prophet. The declaration, in its shortest form, reads, لا إله إلا الله محمد رسول الله lā ʾilāha ʾillā-llāh, muḥammadur-rasūlu-llāh There is no god but God, Muhammad is the messenger of God. Audio audio The noun šahāda, from the verbal root šahida meaning to observe, witness, testify, the Islamic creed is also called, in the dual form, šahādatān. The expression al-šahāda is used in Quran as one of the titles of God, in Sunni Islam, the shahada has two parts, la ilaha illallah, and Muhammadun rasul Allah, which are sometimes referred to as the first shahada and the second shahada. The first statement of the shahada is also known as the tahlīl, in the Quran, the first shahadah takes the form la ilaha illallah twice, and allahu la ilaha illa hu much more often. It appears in the form la ilaha illa Hu in many places. It appears in these forms about 30 times in the Quran, islams monotheistic nature is reflected in the first shahada, which declares belief in the oneness of God and that he is the only entity truly worthy of worship. The second shahada indicates the means by which God has offered guidance to human beings, the verse reminds Muslims that they accept not only the prophecy of Muhammad but also the long line of prophets who preceded him. While the first part is seen as a truth, the second is specific to Islam. Shahada is a statement of both ritual and worship, recitation of the shahādah is the most common statement of faith for Muslims. In Sunni Islam, it is counted as the first of the Five Pillars of Islam, while the Shii Twelvers and it is whispered by the father into the ear of a newborn child, and it is whispered into the ear of a dying person. The five canonical daily prayers include a recitation of the shahada. Recitation of the shahada in front of witnesses is also the first and this occasion often attracts more than the two required witnesses and sometimes includes a party-like celebration to welcome the convert into their new faith. In accordance with the importance played by the notion of intention in Islamic doctrine. Intention is what acts of devotion from mundane acts and a simple reading of the shahada from invoking it as a ritual activity. Though the two phrases of the shahada are both present in the Quran, they are not found there side by side as in the shahada formula. An inscription in the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem reads There is no god but God alone, He has no partner with him, Muhammad is the messenger of God. Another variant appears in coins minted after the reign of Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan, although it is not clear when the shahada first came into common use among Muslims, it is clear that the sentiments it expresses were part of the Quran and Islamic doctrine from the earliest period

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Salah
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Salah, called namāz in some languages, is one of the Five Pillars in the faith of Islam and an obligatory religious duty for every Muslim. It is a physical, mental, and spiritual act of worship that is observed five times every day at prescribed times, in this ritual, the worshiper starts standing, bows, prostrates themself, and concludes while sitting on the ground. During each posture, the worshiper recites or reads certain verses, phrases, the word salah is commonly translated as prayer but this definition might be confusing. Muslims use the words dua or supplication when referring to the definition of prayers which is reverent petitions made to God. Salah is preceded by ritual ablution, Salah consists of the repetition of a unit called a rakʿah consisting of prescribed actions and words. The number of obligatory rakaʿāt varies from two to four according to the time of day or other circumstances, prayer is obligatory for all Muslims except those who are prepubescent, are menstruating, or are experiencing bleeding in the 40 days after childbirth. Every movement in the salat is accompanied by the takbir except the standing between the ruku and sujud, and the ending which has a derivation of the Muslim greeting As-salamu alaykum, Salah is an Arabic word whose basic meaning is bowing, homage, worship, prayer. In its English usage, the reference of the word is almost always confined to the Muslim formal, Muslims themselves use several terms to refer to salah depending on their language or culture. In many parts of the world, including many non-Arab countries such as Indonesia, the other major term is the Persian word namāz, used by speakers of the Indo-Iranian languages, as well as Turkish, Russian, Chinese, Bosnian and Albanian. In North Caucasian languages, the term is lamaz in Chechen and this is a book, there is no doubt in it, a guidance for righteous. Those who believe in unseen and offer Salah and spend from what we have given to them, and those who believe in what We have revealed to thee and what We revealed before thee, and on hereafter they believe. They are on guidance from their lord and they are successful, and offer Salah and pay Zakah and bow along those who bow. Guard your Salah and middle Salah, and stand before God devoutly obedient, then if you fear on foot or riding, then when you become secure remember God as he has taught you that which you did not know previously. And offer Salah at the two ends of day and at the approach of night, indeed good deeds remove bad deeds, offer Salah at the decline of the day until the darkness of night, and Quran at dawn, indeed Quran at dawn ever is a witness. And at night pray Tahajjud an extra for thee, it is expected that your lord raise you to praised station. ) Say call God or call Merciful, by whomever you call, He has good names, and offer Salah and pay Zakah and obey Messenger so that you may receive mercy. And recite that is revealed to you as a book and offer Salah, indeed Salah prohibits immorality and wrongdoing, and remembrance of God is great, ) The chief purpose of salah is to act as a persons communication with and remembrance of God. By reciting The Opening, the first sura of the Quran, as required in daily worship, the worshiper can stand before God, thank and praise Him, under the Hanbali School of thought, a person who doesnt pray five times a day is an unbeliever

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Fasting in Islam
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Fasting in Islam, known as Sawm or siyam صيام, the Arabic words for fasting, is abstaining from eating and drinking. In the terminology of Islamic law, sawm means to abstain from eating and drinking during daylight hours, the observance of sawm during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan is one of the Five Pillars of Islam, but is not confined to that month. Sawm is a cognate to Syriac, ܨܘܡܐ‎ ṣawmā. Literally, it means to abstain, cognates to Hebrew tsom, fasting is not unique to the Muslims. It has been practiced for centuries in connection with religious ceremonies by Christians, Jews, Confucianists, Hindus, Taoists, for example, the Muslims of Central Asia, Afghanistan, India, Iran, Bangladesh, Pakistan and Turkey use the words roza/rozha/roja/oruç, which comes from Farsi. While the Malay community in Malaysia, Brunei and Singapore call it puasa, Muslims are prohibited from eating, drinking and engaging in conjugal sexual relationships from dawn to sunset. Fasting helps Muslims develop self-control, gain an understanding of God’s gifts. Fasting in Islam involves abstaining from all bodily pleasures between dawn and sunset, not only is food forbidden, but also any sexual activity. All things which are regarded as prohibited is even more so in this month, each and every moment during the fast, a person suppresses their passions and desires in loving obedience to God. This consciousness of duty and the spirit of patience helps in strengthening ones faith, fasting helps a person gain self-control. A person who abstains from permissible things like food and drink is likely to feel conscious of his sins, a heightened sense of spirituality helps break the habits of lying, staring with lust at the opposite sex, gossiping, and wasting time. Fasting is also viewed as a means of controlling ones desires, Sawm also carries a significant spiritual meaning. It teaches one the principle of God Consciousness, because when one observes fasting, it is out of deep love for God. Fasting is prescribed to you as it was prescribed to those before you, the month of Ramadan in which was revealed the Quran, a guidance for mankind, and clear proofs of the guidance, and the Criterion. And whosoever of you is present, let him fast the month, and whosoever of you is sick or on a journey, number of other days. God desireth for you ease, he desireth not hardship for you, and that ye should complete the period, and that ye should magnify God for having guided you, the intention means resolving to fast. It is essential to have the intention the night before, night by night, throughout the duration of the fast itself, Muslims will abstain from certain provisions that the Quran has otherwise allowed, namely eating, drinking and sexual intercourse. This is in addition to the standard obligation already observed by Muslims of avoiding that which is not permissible under Quranic or sharia law, without observing this standard obligation, sawm is rendered useless and is seen simply as an act of starvation

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Hajj
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It is one of the five pillars of Islam, alongside Shahadah, Salat, Zakat, and Sawm. The Hajj is the largest annual gathering of people in the world, the state of being physically and financially capable of performing the Hajj is called istitaah, and a Muslim who fulfills this condition is called a mustati. The Hajj is a demonstration of the solidarity of the Muslim people, the word Hajj means to intend a journey, which connotes both the outward act of a journey and the inward act of intentions. The pilgrimage occurs from the 8th to 12th of Dhu al-Hijjah, because the Islamic calendar is lunar and the Islamic year is about eleven days shorter than the Gregorian year, the Gregorian date of Hajj changes from year to year. Ihram is the given to the special spiritual state in which pilgrims wear two white sheets of seamless cloth and abstain from certain actions. The pilgrims then shave their heads, perform a ritual of animal sacrifice, Pilgrims can also go to Mecca to perform the rituals at other times of the year. This is sometimes called the lesser pilgrimage, or Umrah, the present pattern of Hajj was established by Muhammad. However, according to the Quran, elements of Hajj trace back to the time of Abraham, according to Islamic tradition, Abraham was ordered by God to leave his wife Hagar and his son Ishmael alone in the desert of ancient Mecca. In search of water, Hagar desperately ran seven times between the two hills of Safa and Marwah but found none, returning in despair to Ishmael, she saw the baby scratching the ground with his leg and a water fountain sprang forth underneath his foot. Later, Abraham was commanded to build the Kaaba and to people to perform pilgrimage there. The Quran refers to incidents in verses 2, 124-127 and 22. It is said that the archangel Gabriel brought the Black Stone from Heaven to be attached to the Kaaba, in pre-Islamic Arabia, a time known as jahiliyyah, the Kaaba became surrounded by pagan idols. In 630 CE, Muhammad led his followers from Medina to Mecca, cleansed the Kaaba by destroying all the pagan idols, in 632 CE, Muhammad performed his only and last pilgrimage with a large number of followers, and instructed them on the rites of Hajj. It was from this point that Hajj became one of the five pillars of Islam. During the medieval times, pilgrims would gather in big cities of Syria, Egypt and this was done in order to protect the caravan from Bedouin robbers or natural hazards, and to ensure that the pilgrims were supplied with the necessary provisions. Muslim travelers like Ibn Jubayr and Ibn Battuta have recorded detailed accounts of Hajj-travels of medieval time, the caravans followed well-established routes called in Arabic darb al-hajj, lit. Pilgrimage road, which usually followed ancient routes such as the Kings Highway, the date of Hajj is determined by the Islamic calendar, which is based on the lunar year. Every year, the events of Hajj take place in a period, starting on 8 and ending on 12 Dhu al-Hijjah

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Sharia
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Sharia, Sharia law, or Islamic law is the religious law forming part of the Islamic tradition. It is derived from the precepts of Islam, particularly the Quran. In Arabic, the term refers to Gods divine law and is contrasted with fiqh. The manner of its application in modern times has been a subject of dispute between Muslim traditionalists and reformists, traditional theory of Islamic jurisprudence recognizes four sources of sharia, the Quran, sunnah, qiyas, and ijma. Traditional jurisprudence distinguishes two branches of law, ʿibādāt and muʿāmalāt, which together comprise a wide range of topics. Its rulings assign actions to one of five categories, mandatory, recommended, permitted, abhorred, thus, some areas of sharia overlap with the Western notion of law while others correspond more broadly to living life in accordance with God’s will. Historically, sharia was interpreted by independent jurists, ottoman rulers achieved additional control over the legal system by promulgating their own legal code and turning muftis into state employees. Non-Muslim communities had legal autonomy, except in cases of interconfessional disputes, in the modern era, sharia-based criminal laws were widely replaced by statutes inspired by European models. Judicial procedures and legal education in the Muslim world were brought in line with European practice. While the constitutions of most Muslim-majority states contain references to sharia, legislative bodies which codified these laws sought to modernize them without abandoning their foundations in traditional jurisprudence. The Islamic revival of the late 20th century brought along calls by Islamist movements for full implementation of sharia, including reinstatement of hudud corporal punishments, in some cases, this resulted in traditionalist legal reform, while other countries witnessed juridical reinterpretation of sharia advocated by progressive reformers. The role of sharia has become a contested topic around the world, attempts to impose it on non-Muslims have caused intercommunal violence in Nigeria and may have contributed to the breakup of Sudan. Some Muslim-minority countries in Asia, Africa and Europe recognize the use of sharia-based family laws for their Muslim populations, there are ongoing debates as to whether sharia is compatible with secular forms of government, human rights, freedom of thought, and womens rights. The word sharīʿah is used by Arabic-speaking peoples of the Middle East to designate a prophetic religion in its totality, for example, sharīʿat Mūsā means law or religion of Moses and sharīʿatu-nā can mean our religion in reference to any monotheistic faith. Within Islamic discourse, šarīʿah refers to regulations governing the lives of Muslims. For many Muslims, the word means simply justice, and they will consider any law that promotes justice, Muslims of different perspectives agree in their respect for the abstract notion of sharia, but they differ in how they understand the practical implications of the term. Classical sharia, the body of rules and principles elaborated by Islamic jurists during the first centuries of Islam, historical sharia, the body of rules and interpretations developed throughout Islamic history, ranging from personal beliefs to state legislation and varying across an ideological spectrum. Classical sharia has often served as a point of reference for these variants, Contemporary sharia, the full spectrum of rules and interpretations that are developed and practiced at present

28.
Quran
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The Quran is the central religious text of Islam, which Muslims believe to be a revelation from God. It is widely regarded as the finest work in classical Arabic literature, the Quran is divided into chapters, which are then divided into verses. The word Quran occurs some 70 times in the text of the Quran, although different names, according to the traditional narrative, several companions of Muhammad served as scribes and were responsible for writing down the revelations. Shortly after Muhammads death, the Quran was compiled by his companions who wrote down and these codices had differences that motivated the Caliph Uthman to establish a standard version now known as Uthmans codex, which is generally considered the archetype of the Quran known today. There are, however, variant readings, with minor differences in meaning. The Quran assumes familiarity with major narratives recounted in the Biblical scriptures and it summarizes some, dwells at length on others and, in some cases, presents alternative accounts and interpretations of events. The Quran describes itself as a book of guidance and it sometimes offers detailed accounts of specific historical events, and it often emphasizes the moral significance of an event over its narrative sequence. The Quran is used along with the hadith to interpret sharia law, during prayers, the Quran is recited only in Arabic. Someone who has memorized the entire Quran is called a hafiz, some Muslims read Quranic ayah with elocution, which is often called tajwid. During the month of Ramadan, Muslims typically complete the recitation of the whole Quran during tarawih prayers, in order to extrapolate the meaning of a particular Quranic verse, most Muslims rely on the tafsir. The word qurʼān appears about 70 times in the Quran itself and it is a verbal noun of the Arabic verb qaraʼa, meaning he read or he recited. The Syriac equivalent is qeryānā, which refers to reading or lesson. While some Western scholars consider the word to be derived from the Syriac, regardless, it had become an Arabic term by Muhammads lifetime. An important meaning of the word is the act of reciting, as reflected in an early Quranic passage, It is for Us to collect it, in other verses, the word refers to an individual passage recited. Its liturgical context is seen in a number of passages, for example, So when al-qurʼān is recited, listen to it, the word may also assume the meaning of a codified scripture when mentioned with other scriptures such as the Torah and Gospel. The term also has closely related synonyms that are employed throughout the Quran, each synonym possesses its own distinct meaning, but its use may converge with that of qurʼān in certain contexts. Such terms include kitāb, āyah, and sūrah, the latter two terms also denote units of revelation. In the large majority of contexts, usually with an article, the word is referred to as the revelation

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Tafsir
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Tafsir is the Arabic word for exegesis, usually of the Quran. An author of tafsir is a mufassir, a Quranic tafsir will often explain content and provide places and times, not contained in Quranic verses, as well as give the different views and opinions of scholars on the verse. The word tafsīr is derived from the Arabic root, F-S-R which means to explain, to expound, to disclose. In Islamic contexts, it is defined as understanding and uncovering the Will of Allah which has been conveyed by the Quranic text, by means of the Arabic language and one’s own knowledge. As the Quran was revealed to him, he recited the verses to his companions and this was one of Muhammads responsibilities. Elements of Muhammads explanations are, Clarifying verses whose intents are not understood Indication of names, places, times etc. These interpretations have not been collected independently in a book, rather, they have recorded in hadith books, under the topic of tafsir. After the death of Muhammad, his companions, the sahabah, undertook the task of interpretation, most of the sahabah, including Abu Bakr, refrained from commenting with their personal views, and only narrated comments by Muhammad. Others including ibn Abbas used their own knowledge from the Arabic language to interpret the Quran, by the time of the next generations ensuing the Sahabah, the tabiin scholars started using a wide range of sources for tafsir. The whole of the Quran is interpreted, and narrations are separated from tafsir into separate books, grammatical explanations and historical data are preserved within these books, personal opinions are recorded, whether accepted or rejected. The mufasireen listed 15 fields that must be mastered before one can interpret the Quran. Classical Arabic, Is how one learns the meaning of each word, mujahid ibn Jabr said, “It is not permissible for one who holds faith in Allah and the Day of Judgment to speak on the Quran without learning classical Arabic. Arabic Philology, Is important because any change in the diacritical marks affects the meaning, Arabic morphology, is important because changes in the configuration of verb and noun forms change the meaning. Ibn Faris said, “A person who misses out on Arabic morphology has missed out on a lot. ”Al-Ishtiqaaq and this is the science of etymology which explains the reciprocal relation and radical composition between the root and derived word. For example, masih derives from the root word masah which means “to feel something and to something with a wet hand, ”. Ilm al-Bayaan, is the science by which one learns the similes, metaphors, metonymies, zuhoor, ilm al-Badi’, The science by which one learns to interpret sentences which reveal the beauty and eloquence of the spoken and written word. The above-mentioned three sciences are categorized as Ilm-ul-Balagha and it is one of the most important sciences to a mufassir because he is able to reveal the miraculous nature of the Quran through these three sciences. Ilm al-Qiraat, Dialecticisms of the different readings of the Quran and this science is important because one qiraat of the Quran may differ in meaning from another, and one learns to favor one reading over another based on the difference in the meanings

30.
Sunnah
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Sunnah is the verbally transmitted record of the teachings, deeds and sayings, silent permissions of the Islamic prophet Muhammad, as well as various reports about Muhammads companions. The Quran and the Sunnah make up the two sources of Islamic theology and law. The Sunnah is also defined as a path, a way, in the pre-Islamic period, the word sunnah was used with the meaning manner of acting, whether good or bad. During the early Islamic period, the term came to refer to any good precedent set by people of the past, the sunnah of Muhammad includes his specific words, habits, practices, and silent approvals. Instituting these practices was, as the Quran states, a part of Muhammads responsibility as a messenger of God, recording the sunnah was an Arabian tradition and, once people converted to Islam, they brought this custom to their religion. The word Sunnah is also used to refer to religious duties that are optional, Sunnah is an Arabic word that means habit or usual practice. Sunni Muslims are also referred to as Ahl as-Sunnah wal-Jamāah or Ahl as-Sunnah for short, some early Sunnî Muslim scholars reportedly used the term the Sunnah narrowly to refer to Sunnî Doctrine as opposed to the creeds of Shia and other non-Sunni sects. According to Fazlur Rhaman, Sunnah is a behavior concept and this concept could be applied on mental and physical acts, in other words, sunnah counted as a law of behavior. This behavior belongs to conscious agents who can possess their acts, besides, sunnah counted as normative moral law. Sunnah also means the practice which gains the status of normative. A similar in that We have sent among you a Messenger of your own, rehearsing to you Our Signs, and sanctifying you, and instructing you in Scripture and Wisdom, and in new knowledge. Ye have indeed in the Messenger of Allah a beautiful pattern for any one whose hope is in Allah and the Final Day, the teachings of wisdom have been declared to be a function of Muhammad along with the teachings of the scripture. Several Quranic verses mention wisdom coupled with scripture or the book, surah 4, ayah 113 states, For Allah hath sent down to thee the Book and wisdom and taught thee what thou Knewest not, And great is the Grace of Allah unto thee. Surah 2, ayah 231. but remember Allahs grace upon you, surah 33, ayah 34, And bear in mind which is recited in your houses of the revelations of God and of wisdom. Therefore, along with divine revelation the sunnah was directly taught by God, modern Sunni scholars are beginning to examine both the sira and the hadith in order to justify modifications to jurisprudence. The sunnah, in one form or another, would retain its role in providing a moral example. For Muslims the imitation of Muhammad helps one to know and be loved by God, and We have also sent down unto you the reminder and the advice, that you may explain clearly to men what is sent down to them, and that they may give thought. And We have not sent down the Book to you, except that you may explain clearly unto them those things in which they differ, and a guidance and a mercy for a folk who believe

31.
Prophetic biography
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In the Arabic language the word sīra or sīrat comes from the verb sāra, which means to travel or to be on a journey. A persons sīra is that person’s journey through life, or biography, encompassing their birth, events in their life, manners and characteristics, in modern usage it may also refer to a persons resume. It is sometimes written as seera, sirah or sirat, all meaning life or journey, in Islamic literature, the plural form, siyar, could also refer to the rules of war and dealing with non-Muslims. The phrase sīrat rasūl allāh, or al-sīra al-nabawiyya, refers to the study of the life of Muhammad, the term sīra was first linked to the biography of Muhammad by Ibn Shihab al-Zuhri, and later popularized by the work of Ibn Hisham. In the first two centuries of Islamic history, sīra was more known as maghāzī, which is now considered to be only a subset of sīra. Early works of sīra consist of historical reports, or akhbār. Sometimes the word tradition or hadith is used instead, the sīra literature includes a variety of heterogeneous materials, containing mainly stories of military expeditions undertaken by Muhammad and his companions. These stories are intended as historical accounts and used for veneration, the sīra also includes a number of written documents, such as political treaties, military enlistments, assignments of officials, letters to foreign rulers, and so forth. It also records some of the speeches and sermons made by Muhammad, some of the sīra accounts include verses of poetry commemorating certain events and battles. While some of which are considered to be of a quality and lacking authenticity. At later periods, certain type of stories included in sīra developed into their own separate genres, one genre is concerned with stories of prophetic miracles, called aʿlām al-nubuwa. Another genre, called faḍāʾil wa mathālib — tales that show the merits and faults of individual companions, enemies, and other notable contemporaries of Muhammad. Some works of sīra also positioned the story of Muhammad as part of a narrative that includes stories of prophets, Persian Kings, pre-Islamic Arab tribes. Parts of sīra were inspired by, or elaborate upon, events mentioned in the Quran and these parts were often used by writers of tafsir and asbab al-nuzul to provide background information for events mentioned in certain ayat. The main difference between a hadith and a report is that a hadith is not concerned with an event as such. Rather the purpose of hadith is to record a religious doctrine as a source of Islamic law. By contrast, while a khabar may carry some legal or theological implications, in terms of structure, a hadith and a khabar are very similar. Thus starting from the 8th and 9th century, many scholars have devoted their efforts to both kinds of texts equally, also some historians consider the sīra and maghāzī literature to be a subset of Hadith

32.
Fiqh
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Figuratively, fiqh means, knowledge about Islamic legal rulings from their sources. He must look deep down into a matter and not suffice himself with just the apparent meaning, a person who only knows the appearance of a matter is not a faqīh. Conceptually, the attempt to understand divine law. Whereas shariah is immutable and infallible, fiqh is fallible and changeable, fiqh is distinguished from usul al-fiqh, the methods of legal interpretation and analysis. Fiqh is the product of application of usul al-fiqh, the product of human efforts at understanding the divine will. A hukm is a ruling in a given case. Fiqh deals with the observance of rituals, morals and social legislation in Islam, in the modern era, there are four prominent schools of fiqh within Sunni practice, plus two within Shia practice. A person trained in fiqh is known as a Faqih, the word fiqh is an Arabic term meaning deep understanding or full comprehension. Technically it refers to the body of Islamic law extracted from detailed Islamic sources and this definition is consistent amongst the jurists. In Modern Standard Arabic, fiqh has come to mean jurisprudence in general and it is separated in Sunni, shia and others. Qiyas, i. e. analogy which is deployed if Ijma or historic collective reasoning on the issue is not available. For example, the Quran states one needs to engage in prayers and fast during the month of Ramadan. Details about these issues can be found in the traditions of Muhammad, so Quran, some topics are without precedent in Islams early period. In those cases, Muslim jurists try to arrive at conclusions by other means, Sunni jurists use historical consensus of the community, a majority in the modern era also use analogy and weigh the harms and benefits of new topics, and a plurality utilizes juristic preference. The conclusions arrived at with the aid of additional tools constitute a wider array of laws than the Sharia consists of. Thus, in contrast to the sharia, fiqh is not regarded as sacred and this division of interpretation in more detailed issues has resulted in different schools of thought. This wider concept of Islamic jurisprudence is the source of a range of laws in different topics that guide Muslims in everyday life, Islamic jurisprudence covers two main areas, Rules in relation to actions, and, Rules in relation to circumstances surrounding actions. The Sunni schools are Hanafi Maliki Shafii Hanbali see Wahhabism Zahiri Qurtubi No longer exists Laythi No longer exists, the schools of Shia Islam comprise, Jafari Zaydi Entirely separate from both the Sunni and Shia traditions, Khawarij Islam has evolved its own distinct school

33.
History of Islam
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The history of Islam concerns the political, economic, social, and cultural developments of the Islamic civilization. Despite concerns about reliability of sources, most historians believe that Islam originated in Mecca. A century later, the Islamic empire extended from Iberia in the west to the Indus river in the east, polities such as those ruled by the Umayyads, Abbasids, Fatimids, and Mamluks were among the most influential powers in the world. The Islamic civilization gave rise to many centers of culture and science and produced notable astronomers, mathematicians, during the 19th and early 20th centuries most parts of the Muslim world fell under influence or direct control of European Great Powers. Their efforts to win independence and build modern nation states over the course of the last two centuries continue to reverberate to the present day, the following timeline can serve as a rough visual guide to the most important polities in the Islamic world prior to the First World War. It covers major historical centers of power and culture, including Arabia, Mesopotamia, Persia, Levant, Egypt, Maghreb, al-Andalus, Transoxania, Hindustan, dates are approximate, consult particular articles for details. The study of the earliest periods in Islamic history is difficult by a lack of sources. For example, the most important historiographical source for the origins of Islam is the work of al-Tabari, while al-Tabari was an excellent historian by the standards of his time and place, use of his work as a source is problematic for two reasons. For one, his style of historical writing permitted liberal use of mythical, legendary, stereotyped, distorted, Second, al-Tabaris descriptions of the beginning of Islam post-date the events by a large amount of time, al-Tabari having died in 923 CE. Differing views about how to deal with the sources has led to the development of four different approaches to the history of early Islam. All four methods have some level of support today, the descriptive method uses the outlines of Islamic traditions, while being adjusted for the stories of miracles and faith-centred claims within those sources. Edward Gibbon and Gustav Weil represent some of the first historians following the descriptive method, on the source critical method, a comparison of all the sources is sought in order to identify which informants to the sources are weak and thereby distinguish spurious material. The work of William Montgomery Watt and that of Wilferd Madelung are two source critical examples, on the tradition critical method, the sources are believed to be based on oral traditions with unclear origins and transmission history, and so are treated very cautiously. Ignaz Goldziher was the pioneer of the critical method. The skeptical method doubts nearly all of the material in the traditional sources, an early example of the skeptical method was the work of John Wansbrough. Nowadays, the popularity of the different methods employed varies on the scope of the works under consideration, for overview treatments of the history of early Islam, the descriptive approach is more popular. For scholars who look at the beginnings of Islam in depth, after the 8th century CE, the quality of sources improves. For the time prior to the beginning of Islam—in the 6th century CE—sources are superior as well, Islam arose within the context of Late Antiquity

34.
Muhammad in Islam
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Muḥammad ibn ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿAbdul-Muttalib ibn Hashim, in short form Muhammad, is considered by Muslims to be the last Rasul and Nabi sent by Allah to guide humanity to the right way. The religious, social, and political tenets that Muhammad established in the light of Quran became the foundation of Islam, Muslims often refer to Muhammad as Prophet Muhammad, or just The Prophet or The Messenger, and regard him as the greatest of all Prophets. He is seen by Muslims as a possessor of all the virtues, as an act of respect, Muslims follow the name of Muhammad by the Arabic benediction sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, a practice instructed by Qur’an and Hadith. The deeds and sayings in the life of Muhammad – known as Sunnah – are considered a model of the life-style that Muslims are obliged to follow. Recognizing Muhammad as Gods final messenger is one of the requirements in Islam which is clearly laid down in the second part of the Shahadah. The Qur’an chiefly refers to Muhammad as Messenger and Messenger of God, and asks people to him so as to become successful in this life. Born in about 570 CE into a respected Qurayshi family of Mecca, because of persecution of the newly converted Muslims, upon the invitation of a delegation from Medina, Muhammad and his followers migrated to Medina in 622 CE, an event known as Hijra. A turning point in Muhammads life, this Hijra also marks the beginning of Islamic calendar. Despite the ongoing hostility of the Meccans, Muhammad, along with his followers, took control of Mecca in 630 CE, treated its citizens with generosity, and ordered to destroy all the pagan idols. By the time he died in 632, his teachings had won the acceptance of Islam by almost all the tribes of the Arabian Peninsula. The Qur’an enumerates little about Muhammads early life or other details, but it talks about his prophetic mission, his moral excellence. According to the Qur’an, Muhammad is the last in a chain of prophets sent by God, throughout the Qur’an, Muhammad is referred to as Messenger, Messenger of God, and Prophet. Some of such verses are 2,101,2,143,2,151,3,32,3,81,3,144,3,164,4, 79-80,5,15,5,41,7,157,8,01,9,3,33,40,48,29, and 66,09. Other terms are used, including Warner, bearer of glad tidings, the Quran asserts that Muhammad was a man who possessed the highest moral excellence, and that God made him a good example or a goodly model for Muslims to follow. The Quran disclaims any superhuman characteristics for Muhammad, but describes him in terms of human qualities. In several verses, the Quran crystallizes Muhammad’s relation to humanity, according to the Quran, God sent Muhammad with truth, and as a blessing to the whole world. The Quran also categorizes some theological issues regarding Muhammad, the most important among them is the edict to follow the teachings of Muhammad. The Quran repeatedly commands people to follow God and his Messenger in verses including 3, 31-32,3,132,4,59, and 4,69

35.
Ahl al-Bayt
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Ahl al-Bayt is a phrase meaning, literally, People of the House or Family of the House. Within the Islamic tradition, the term refers to the family of the Islamic prophet Muhammad, in Shia Islam the Ahl al-Bayt are central to Islam and interpreters of the Quran and Sunnah. Shias believe they are successors of Muhammad and consist of Muhammad, Fatimah, Ali, Hasan, and Husayn and the Imams, there are differing opinions on the scope and importance of Ahl al-Bayt. Sometimes the descendants of his uncles, Abu Talib and al-‘Abbas are included as well. Some Sunnis consider only the family up until Hasan ibn Ali, the Ummayad Caliph, Muawiyah I, was the one to oppose Ali, member of the Ahlul Bayt, and cousin and brother in law to Muhammad. Following Muawiyah Is rule, his successor and offspring, Yazid I, Bayt refers to habitation and dwelling, whether tented or built. It can also be translated as household. The Ahl-Al-Bayt of a person refers to his members and all those who live in his house. Ahlul Bayt is the form of addressing the members and wife of the family. The Quran uses the term Ahl al-Bayt twice as a term of respect for wives, the first instance refers to Muhammads wives, and the second refers to Abrahams wife Sara. According to some interpretations, the Quran also implicitly refers to Ahl al-Bayt in 42,23 using the term al-qurbā, there has been much debate concerning which people constitute Ahl al-Bayt. Although there have been disagreements, there is a consensus amongst Sunni and Shia Muslims that the Ahl al-Kisa hadith refers specifically to Ali, Fatimah, Hasan. Mention of the Ahl al-Bayt, Muhammads household, is present in a verse of the Quran as follows, O wives of the Prophet. You are not like any other of the women, If you will be on guard, then be not soft in speech, lest he in whose heart is a disease yearn. And stay in houses and do not display your finery like the displaying of the ignorance of yore, and keep up prayer, and pay the poor-rate. Allah only desires to keep away the uncleanness from you, O people of the House, and to purify you a purifying. And keep to mind what is recited in your houses of the communications of Allah, the precise definition of the term in this verse has been subject to varying interpretations. In one tradition, according to which Muhammads companion Salman al-Farsi is included as a member, it is used to distinguish from the muhajirun and this is supported by various traditions attributed to Muhammad wherein he addresses each of his wives as Ahl al-Bayt

36.
Sahabah
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The term aṣ-ṣaḥābah refers to the companions, disciples, scribes and family of the Islamic prophet Muhammad. This form is definite plural, the singular is masculine sahabi. Later scholars accepted their testimony of the words and deeds of Muhammad, the testimony of the companions, as it was passed down through trusted chains of narrators, was the basis of the developing Islamic tradition. The most widespread definition of a companion is someone who met Muhammad, believed in him and died as a Muslim. ”Anyone who died after rejecting Islam and those who saw him but held off believing in him until after his passing are not considered Sahaba but Tabiin. In their view, the Quran has outlined a high level of faith as one of the qualities of the Sahabah. Hence, they admit to this list only those individuals who had contact with Muhammad, lived with him. This view has implications in Islamic law since narrations of Muhammad transmitted through the Sahabah acquire a status of authenticity. Lists of prominent companions usually run to 50 or 60 names, the book entitled Istîâb fî marifat-il-Ashâb by Hafidh Yusuf bin Muhammad bin Qurtubi consists of 2,770 biographies of male and 381 biographies of female Sahabah. According to an observation in the book entitled Mawâhib-i-ladunniyya, a number of persons had already converted to Islam by the time Muhammad died. There were 10,000 by the time Mecca was conquered and 70,000 during the Battle of Tabouk in 630. Some Muslims assert that they were more than 200,000 in number, indeed, He was to them Kind and Merciful. In Islam, there are three types of Sahabah, The people who were Muslims at the time of Badr, but those who believed and did not emigrate - for you there is no guardianship of them until they emigrate. And if they seek help of you for the religion, then you must help, and Allah is Seeing of what you do. Quran, sura 8, ayah 72 And hold firmly to the rope of Allah all together and do not become divided. And remember the favor of Allah upon you - when you were enemies and He brought your hearts together and you became, by His favor, and you were on the edge of a pit of the Fire, and He saved you from it. Thus does Allah make clear to you His verses that you may be guided, Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah, and those with him are forceful against the disbelievers, merciful among themselves. You see them bowing and prostrating, seeking bounty from Allah and their mark is on their faces from the trace of prostration. That is their description in the Torah, Allah has promised those who believe and do righteous deeds among them forgiveness and a great reward. The people who were Muslims before victory at Mecca and went into exile and they are also high in degree, especially those who were present at Hudabiyah

37.
Rashidun
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The concept of Rightly Guided Caliphs originated with the later Abbasid Caliphate based in Baghdad. It is a reference to the Sunni imperative Hold firmly to my example, the first four Caliphs who ruled after the death of Muhammad are often described as the Khulafāʾ Rāshidūn. The Rashidun were either elected by a council or chosen based on the wishes of their predecessor, in the order of succession, the Rāshidūn were, Abu Bakr. ‘Umar ibn al-Khattab, – Umar is often spelled Omar in some Western scholarship, ‘Uthman ibn ‘Affan – Uthman is often spelled Othman in some non-Arabic scholarship. ‘Ali ibn Abi Talib – During this period however, Mu‘awiyah I controlled the Levantine, in addition to this, there are several views regarding additional rashidun. Al-Hasan, the eldest grandson of Muhammad, briefly succeeded ‘Ali ibn Abi Talib as caliph in 661 CE, Al-Hasan abdicated his right to the caliphate in favour of Mu‘awiyah I in order to end the potential for ruinous civil war. ‘Umar ibn ‘Abdul-‘Aziz, who was one of the Umayyad caliphs, has often been regarded by Sunni historians as one of the Rashidun, more rarely, the Ottoman caliph Fatih Sultan Mehmed is also sometimes regarded to be among the rightly guided caliphs. In the Ibadi tradition however, only the first two caliphs, Abu Bakr and ‘Umar are considered to be the Two Rightly Guided Caliphs, ibn Hajar al-Asqalani also includes the Abbasid caliphs, including Harun al-Rashid, in his enumeration. Abu Bakr was a companion and the father-in-law of Muhammad. He ruled over the Rashidun Caliphate from 632-634 CE when he became the first Muslim Caliph following Muhammads death, Abu Bakr was called Al-Siddiq and was known by that title among later generations of Muslims. ‘Umar c.2 Nov. was a companion and adviser to Muhammad. He succeeded Abu Bakr on 23 August 634 as the second caliph, under Umar the Islamic empire expanded at an unprecedented rate ruling the whole Sassanid Persian Empire and more than two thirds of the Eastern Roman Empire. Among his conquests are Jerusalem, Damascus, and Egypt and he was killed by a Persian captive. Uthman ibn Affan was one of the companions of Muhammad, ‘Uthman was born into the Umayyad clan of Mecca, a powerful family of the Quraysh tribe. He became caliph at the age of 70, under his leadership, the empire expanded into Fars in 650 and some areas of Khorasan in 651, and the conquest of Armenia was begun in the 640s. His rule ended when he was assassinated, the committee members were also reciters of the Quran and had memorised the entire text during the lifetime of Muhammad. This work was due to the vast expansion of Islam under Uthmans rule. This had led to variant readings of the Qur’an for those converts who were not familiar with the language, after clarifying any possible errors in pronunciation or dialects, ‘Uthman sent copies of the sacred text to each of the Muslim cities and garrison towns, and destroyed variant texts

38.
Imamah (Shia)
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In Shia Islam, the imamah is the doctrine that the figures known as imams are rightfully the central figures of the ummah, the entire Shiite system of doctrine focuses on the imamah. These Imams have the role of providing commentary and interpretation of the Quran as well as guidance to their followers as is the case of the living Imams of the Nizari Ismaili tariqah. According to Nasir al-Din al-Tusi, the Imam is a means through which humans receive divine grace, because He brings men closer to obedience, as fulfilling the human being is his wish, it is logical that God appoints Imams to subject man to his wishes. So his existence and his deeds display two forms of grace of God toward man, the word Imām denotes a person who stands or walks in front. For Sunni Islam, the word is used to mean a person who leads the course of prayer in the mosque. It also means the head of a madhhab, all Muslims believe that Muhammad had said, To whomsoever I am Mawla, Ali is his Mawla. This hadith has been narrated in different ways by different sources in no less than 45 hadith books of both Sunni and Shia collections. This hadith has also narrated by the collector of hadiths, al-Tirmidhi,3713, as well as Ibn Maajah,121. The major point of conflict between the Sunni and the Shia is in the interpretation of the word Mawla, for the Shia the word means Lord and Master and has the same elevated significance as when the term had been used to address Muhammad himself during his lifetime. However, for the Sunnis the word means the beloved or the revered and has no other significance at all. Each succession dispute brought forth a different tariqah within Shia Islam, each Shia tariqah followed its own particular Imams dynasty, thus resulting in different numbers of Imams for each particular Shia tariqah. When the dynastic line of the separating successor Imam ended with no heir to succeed him, then either he or his successor was believed to have gone into concealment. The Shia tariqah with a majority of adherents are the Twelvers who are known as the Shia. After that come the Nizari Ismailis commonly known as the Ismailis, the Druze tariqah initially were part of the Fatimid Ismailis and separated from them after the death of the Fatimid Imam and Caliph al Hakim Bi Amrillah. The Shia Sevener tariqah no longer exists, another small tariqah is the Zaidi Shias, also known as the Fivers and who do not believe in The Occultation of their last Imam. Although all these different Shia tariqahs belong to the Shia group in Islam, the Shia Nizari Ismailis by definition have to have a present and living Imam until the end of time. Thus if any living Nizari Ismaili Imam fails to leave behind a successor after him then the Nizari Ismailism’s cardinal principle would be broken and it’s very raison dêtre would come to an end. They refer to the verse 5,3 of Quran which was revealed to the prophet when he appointed Ali as his successor at the day of Ghadir Khumm, regarding 17,71, no age can be without an Imam

39.
Caliphate
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A caliphate is an area containing an Islamic steward known as a caliph —a person considered a religious successor to the Islamic prophet, Muhammad, and a leader of the entire Muslim community. During the history of Islam after the Rashidun period, many Muslim states, the Sunni branch of Islam stipulates that, as a head of state, a caliph should be elected by Muslims or their representatives. Followers of Shia Islam, however, believe a caliph should be an Imam chosen by God from the Ahl al-Bayt, before the advent of Islam, Arabian monarchs traditionally used the title malik, or another from the same root. The term caliph, derives from the Arabic word khalīfah, which means successor, steward, however, studies of pre-Islamic texts suggest that the original meaning of the phrase was successor selected by God. There was no specified procedure for this shura or consultation, candidates were usually, but not necessarily, from the same lineage as the deceased leader. Capable men who would lead well were preferred over an ineffectual heir, Sunni Muslims believe that Abu Bakr was chosen by the community and that this was the proper procedure. Sunnis further argue that a caliph should ideally be chosen by election or community consensus, the Shia believe that Ali, the son-in-law and cousin of Muhammad, was chosen by Muhammad as his spiritual and temporal successor as the Mawla of all Muslims in the event of Ghadir Khumm. The caliph was often known as Amir al-Muminin, Muhammad established his capital in Medina, after he died, it remained the capital during the Rashidun Caliphate, before Kufa was reportedly made the capital by Caliph Ali. At times there have been rival claimant caliphs in different parts of the Islamic world, according to Sunni Muslims, the first caliph to be called Amir al-Muminin was Abu Bakr, followed by Umar, the second of the Rashidun. Uthman and Ali also were called by the title, while the Shia consider Ali to have been the only truly legitimate caliph. After the collapse of the Ottoman Empire, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk officially abolished the system of Caliphate in Islam as part of his secular reforms, the Kings of Morocco still label themselves with the title Amir al-Muminin for the Moroccans, but lay no claim to the Caliphate. Some Muslim countries, including Somalia, Indonesia and Malaysia, were never subject to the authority of a Caliphate, with the exception of Aceh, consequently, these countries had their own, local, sultans or rulers who did not fully accept the authority of the Caliph. Abu Bakr, the first successor of Muhammad, nominated Umar as his successor on his deathbed, Umar, the second caliph, was killed by a Persian named Piruz Nahavandi. His successor, Uthman, was elected by a council of electors, Uthman was killed by members of a disaffected group. Ali then took control but was not universally accepted as caliph by the governors of Egypt and he faced two major rebellions and was assassinated by Abd-al-Rahman ibn Muljam, a Khawarij. Alis tumultuous rule lasted only five years and this period is known as the Fitna, or the first Islamic civil war. The followers of Ali later became the Shia minority sect of Islam, the followers of all four Rashidun Caliphs became the majority Sunni sect. Under the Rashidun each region of the Caliphate had its own governor, Muawiyah, a relative of Uthman and governor of Syria, succeeded Ali as Caliph

Protestantism and Islam entered into contact during the 16th century when Calvinist Protestants in present-day Hungary …

A map of the dominion of the Habsburgs following the Battle of Mühlberg (1547) as depicted in The Cambridge Modern History Atlas (1912); Habsburg lands are shaded green. Not shaded are the lands of the Holy Roman Empire over which the Habsburgs presided.

Religious conversion is the adoption of a set of beliefs identified with one particular religious denomination to the …

Conversion of Ghazan. Ghazan was born and raised as a Christian, studied Buddhism, and converted to Islam upon accession to the throne. Illustration from: "World History", Rachid Ad-Din, 14th century.

The traditional normative conversion process to Judasim (gijur) of one, two or more years is finalized with ritual immersion in a natural collection of water, e.g. a river, a lake, or a mikveh, down to the present day (Beth-El reform-synagogue, Birmingham, Alabama, 2006).

The Conversion of Saint Paul, a 1600 painting by Italian artist Caravaggio (1571–1610)

The history of Islam concerns the political, economic, social, and cultural developments of the Islamic civilization. …

Arabia united under Muhammad

The Mosque of Uqba (Great Mosque of Kairouan), founded by the Umayyad general Uqba Ibn Nafi in 670 CE, is the oldest and most prestigious mosque in the Muslim West; its present form dates from the 9th century, Kairouan, Tunisia.

An Arabic manuscript written under the second half of the Abbasid Era.